


Liberty and Sharpshot

by jsaint34



Series: Super-Soldier [5]
Category: Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Multi, romanogers - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-20
Updated: 2014-09-30
Packaged: 2018-02-14 00:39:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 34
Words: 36,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2171373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jsaint34/pseuds/jsaint34
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A story set six years after New Soldier/Old Enemy.  Revolves around James and Talia Rogers, Becca Barton and their lives.  Sequel to Super-Soldier Series.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 21st Birthday

Prologue: Six Years Later  
Steve and Natasha were proud of both their children. James and Talia had grown up with the best qualities of both of their parents. They were honest, always worked hard and had an unerring drive to do the right thing. They both excelled in school. Talia was always more interested in the academic side of her education, and James chose the athletics. While his sister went on to become the valedictorian, James was the starting quarterback for the football team. Their parents tried to keep their lives as normal and grounded as possible, but when you’re the twin children of Captain America and The Black Widow, normal isn’t a word that enters into your vocabulary. As James and Talia’s next birthday came around changes would be in store for all of the Avengers.

 

Growing up in Avengers Tower wasn’t easy. You hardly had any privacy, and you constantly had to be on guard for the possibility of an attack. There were the quiet moments as well. These were times that the team enjoyed the most. They’d seen surprise marriages and engagements. Births and returns of old friends thought long gone. The one they all looked forward to the most was the day the twins reached their 21st year.  
“Good morning, kids,” Steve says as James and Talia enter the kitchen of their apartment.  
“Morning, Dad. Where’s Mom this morning,” Talia asks.  
“She’s still on a stakeout with your Uncle Clint. This request from Phil was a big one. SHIELD is under the gun with this new threat. This required the best Agents that have ever worked for the Agency.”  
“So, Mom’s not going to be here for our birthday,” James asks. “She’s never missed one. This is our most important birthday, she should be here.”  
“Hold on son, I know you must be disappointed, and she wants to be here too. She left a note for you both.”  
“James and Talia, Happy Birthday. I hope to be back from the mission with your Uncle Clint before you both wake up. If I’m not, your Dad is going to make you breakfast, don’t worry I left him the recipe that I’ve made every year since your fifth birthday. I know you’re probably both disappointed that I’m not there. Your Uncle Phil really needed our help with this, and we couldn’t say no. I promise that it’s just a simple observation mission and I will not miss the rest of your day. Have fun, and I’ll see you soon.”  
“Love, Mom.”  
“At least she’ll be back. Mom has never made a promise she couldn’t keep,” Talia says.  
“She’ll be here, kids. So, while I make breakfast, why don’t you two open the presents she got for you? They’re over on the couch.”  
James and Talia are tempted to open their gifts, but decide to wait until their Mother gets back. While they are eating breakfast Steve receives a call he couldn’t have expected.  
“Excuse me Captain, but I am receiving a call for you,” Jarvis says.  
“I’m cleaning up, Jarvis, play it over the loud speaker,” Steve replies.  
“Good Morning; is this Captain Rogers,” a voice asks.  
“Yes it is, what can I do for you?”  
“I’m sorry Captain, there seems to be some interference, could you speak up?”  
“I’m washing dishes. Give me a minute.”  
“Captain, if I may, this is an important call, and it is requested that you put aside your domestic chores for the moment.”  
“All right, I’m going to have to take this in my office, Jarvis could you put the call on hold please?”  
“Of Course, Captain. I am routing the call to your private phone line.”  
“Guys, I have to take this, hopefully it won’t be long.”  
Steve enters his and Tasha’s office, and as the door closes, she enters from the stakeout she was on.  
“Hey, Kids. I told you I’d be back for your birthday,” Tasha says. “Did you have breakfast? Where’s your Dad?”  
“He just had to take a call in the office. Sounds big,” Talia says.  
“I hope you two aren’t being called away for a mission, today of all days,” James says.  
“If it is a mission, I’m sure we can get another member of the team to handle it. I’ve been out all night, if your Dad finishes the call; tell him I’m in the shower.”  
As the kids discuss what mission their parents could be going on next, Steve is on the call and thoroughly confused.  
“Okay, so I’m in my office and we’re on a secure line. So who may I ask is calling me so early this morning,” he asks.  
“Captain Rogers, first of all I appreciate you taking the time to speak with me. My name is Phillips, and I’m President Jacobs Chief of Staff.”  
“So what can I do for you, Mr. Phillips?”  
“It’s not what you can do for me Captain. I’m calling on behalf of the President.”  
“So what can I do for him?”  
“President Jacobs has asked me to inform you that you have been nominated to serve as Secretary of Defense.”  
Steve is a little taken aback at the announcement. He’s a soldier, a desk job has never been something he even considered.  
“Doesn’t he already have a Secretary of Defense? And no offense Chief Phillips, but politics really aren’t my thing. Captain America is first and foremost a soldier, I have a duty to protect the American people.”  
“That’s exactly why the President wants you in this position. Every war you’ve fought makes you the perfect man to be in charge of our nations’ defenses. He believes that only a soldier with your experience against HYDRA, the Chitauri and the Skrulls can effectively prepare our soldiers for any threat that comes our way.”  
“I’m not really sure what to say,” Steve replies. “I appreciate the confidence he has in me, but I think I should discuss this with my family, and the Avengers.”  
“Of Course, Captain. This is a big decision. Please take what time you need, but the President and I do both hope you will take the offer.”  
“I will take that into consideration. Have a good day.”  
As Steve has Jarvis disconnect the line, he sits down at his drafting desk to think about how this will change his life. Meanwhile, Tasha has finished her shower and comes into the office with him.  
“Steve? You were on that call for a while. We have a mission to take care of?”  
“No, Tasha. I just got a call from the President’s Chief of Staff.”  
“Talia said this sounded important. You’re a lot more distracted than after you found out I was Natalie Connors.”  
“How do I say this? Jacobs has nominated me to be Secretary of Defense.”  
“Couldn’t that be a good thing? I mean, think about every battle you’ve been in. Your experience far outweighs any one else he could have picked.”  
“Yeah, but Tasha, think about what this means. It means we uproot back to D.C. We potentially have to leave the Avengers. We’ve got a good life here in New York.”  
“Why Captain; after all this time I didn’t think you’d still be afraid of change,” Tasha jokes.  
“It’s not the change. It’s giving up…,” he pauses.  
“It’s hanging up the shield and uniform. You’ve been Captain America for so long it’s all you really believe that you’re good at.”  
“Well, yeah, I always had a feeling I might have to give it all up someday. Now that day is here, and I don’t want to retire.”  
Tasha comes over to stand behind him and wraps her arms around his shoulders.  
“Steve, I know this hard. You’re only looking at the negative though. You’re a hero to millions. You’ve given more than enough for this country. You’re good at a lot more than just being Cap. You’re a great friend, every one of the Avengers respects you. You’re a great father to our kids. Most importantly, you’re a great husband. You’re the man who taught this ex-Russian spy what love really is.”  
“So are you saying I should take the job, sweetheart?”  
“Like always, I’m saying that whatever you decide, I support you. Besides, if you do take the job, it will make it easier for the both of us.”  
“Not sure I follow, Tasha. You want me to retire?”  
“I’ve got news too. After the stakeout, Phil called me. He let me know that Nick is on the Council now. With Maria still full time at Stark, they both want me to be the new Deputy Director of SHIELD.”  
“That’s a great opportunity for you,” Steve realizes. “Did you say yes?”  
“I said I’d have to think about it. I wanted to discuss it with you first.”  
“This is a lot of change for the both of us all of a sudden. Let’s both take some time to think it over. Right now, we’ve got something far more important to take care of.”  
“Did the kids open their presents yet,” Tasha asks.  
“No, they wanted to wait for you to get home. Let’s go get this party started, I’m sure the other Avengers are waiting, and you know how Bruce gets when he has to wait on the cake,” Steve says laughing.  
“Bruce is not the one I’m worried about, Clint is far more dangerous when he doesn’t get his sugar rush.”  
As Steve and Tasha exit the office, both their kids look at them expectantly wondering why they were in there so long.  
“So what’s the mission this time,” James asks, breaking the silence.  
“There’s no mission, we do have some news though. We’ll tell you both after the party,” Tasha replies. “It involves the entire team, so we want everyone to know.”  
“Come on guys,” Steve says. “This is your day, we can talk shop afterwards.”  
As the family takes the elevator down to the recreation floor, James and Talia can’t help but notice a certain level of excitement in both of their parents. It must be good news if they want to reveal it after the party, James thinks.  
For two hours the Avengers celebrate the twins reaching adulthood. Phil brought his team in. Carol, Rhodey, and Sam all made it back in time from their missions. The presents were all unwrapped, while Bruce and Clint fought over the last piece of cake. Betty finally had to step in and resolve the situation before Hulk smash was heard. As the group settled down, Steve and Tasha decided it was time for their kids to make a choice for their own lives.  
“So, guys,” Steve says, “You know we always wanted you to choose what you want for your future. Your Mom and I know that growing up in our shadows couldn’t have been easy. We protected you, we trained you. We don’t want you to feel that you have to take up our way of life.”  
“Your Dad is right. I hope all of us have trained you well enough to be able to defend yourselves from anyone who would seek to do you harm. The choice of what you do from here on out is your own.”  
Curious as to where this is going, Talia speaks first.  
“What’s going on, you act like you’re not going to be around anymore. Does this have to do with the phone call Dad got?”  
Knowing they can’t keep this quiet any longer, Steve and Tasha reveal the news.  
“Talia, the phone call I received was from the President’s Chief of Staff. I’ve been nominated to be Secretary of Defense for President Jacobs. I haven’t made my decision yet, we wanted to know what you and your brother think.”  
“What about you, Mom,” James asks. “What’s your news?”  
Phil speaks up before she can, and has an offer for the twins as well.  
“Kids, I’ve asked Natasha to be the Deputy Director of SHIELD. While I hope she takes the job, I know that neither she nor Steve would do this without talking to you about it first. To that end, I want to also offer both of you a position as Agents as well.”  
“What about the Avengers,” Talia asks. “What happens to the team?”  
“We’ll still be here,” Tony assures them. “Just because things are changing, doesn’t mean the Avengers are disbanding.”  
“Of course it doesn’t,” Phil says. “It means we’ll be working closer together. It will actually benefit all of us.”  
James is excited about the prospect of becoming a SHIELD agent. He was always concerned about following in his father’s footsteps and having to take the mantle of Captain America. He would have done it, but he did have reservations.  
“I’m in,” James says. “I’ve even already chosen a code name.”  
“Do tell, son.” I know you had trepidations about taking up my shield. It’s why Tasha and I wanted the decision to be yours,” Steve says supportively.  
“Dad, I don’t feel anyone should be Captain America but you. Joining SHIELD is a dream come true. I chose the call sign Brown Recluse.”  
“We always knew you did take more after me, James,” Tasha says with a laugh. “It’s a good code name.”  
“Somehow I knew he’d go with a spider theme,” Clint laughs.  
“What about you, Talia? Do you want to take Phil’s offer and join SHIELD,” Steve asks.  
“Actually, Dad, I thought I’d stay with the Avengers. James was right; you’re the only one who should be Captain America. You and Mom have been our heroes our whole lives, but the world still needs someone to fight for freedom. I want to follow you, call me Liberty.”  
Tony is unsurprised at the code names his niece and nephew have taken, but the old Stark snarky attitude has to pop up.  
“It’s official, your kids are just as lame as the two of you are,” Tony says with a laugh.  
“Maybe so, Tony. But you’re still a man in a can,” Steve jokes back.  
“Are you ever going to get tired of giving me a good burn, Rogers? Never mind, James, Talia, seeing as how you made your decisions already, I have a gift for each of you.”  
As Tony opens up the footlocker he had specially designed for their final gifts, Steve and Tasha already know what is in there. The three of them all worked together for these, expecting the choices the children made. In addition to the book on American History Talia received and the 101 ways to outthink an opponent book James got, the next presents were even more exciting.  
“Talia, Steve and I thought hard about this one. While I wasn’t able to recreate the process my Dad used to make the vibranium shield, I was able to fuse it together with an adamantium alloy to reinforce your Dad’s original triangular shield. It will absorb vibration, and it’s stronger now than it used to be.”  
“Please tell me you didn’t steal this from the Smithsonian exhibit,” she asks.  
“No, we didn’t steal it,” Tony replies. “I simply made them another replica. Besides it was Mr. All-American who stole his old uniform from them.”  
“So what about me, Uncle Tony, what did you make for me,” James asks.  
“For you James, I’ve designed a new set of weapons based on Nat’s Widow’s bite. You can call the weapons whatever you want. What I think you might like the most is this.” Tony pulls a small device out of his pocket. “This device is coded to your D.N.A. It’s a special tracker that attaches to the butt of any pistol.”  
“Which means what,” James asks.  
“It means that if anyone takes your firearm from you, it will set off an electric shock, immobilizing them, but not powerful enough to kill,” Tony replies.  
“Why didn’t you ever develop anything like that for me, genius,” Tasha asks.  
“Because you didn’t need them, I’ve never seen anyone take a gun from you.”  
Tasha has to admit that Tony is right. As the party winds down, one last guest arrives late to the party. She is a little perturbed that they didn’t wait for her.  
“I can’t believe you guys finished the party already, and without me. You couldn’t wait until Mom and I got back from the airport,” Becca asks incredulously.


	2. Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Becca, James and Talia make the decisions that they want for their lives.

Becca had been overseas after graduating high school. Clint and Bobbi had wanted her to make her own choices, just like Steve and Tasha did for their kids. Her return brought the whole family back together. After the reunion, Steve and Tasha are still weighing their options, and Clint and Bobbi would drop more big news.  
“So guys, what do you think about the choices offered to your Mom and I,” Steve asks.  
After a short discussion, James and Talia both agree on something, which is rare since there was no end to the sibling rivalry they had over the years.  
“Mom, Dad, James and I think you should both take the offers you were given. We know you’ll always be there if we need you,” Talia says. “We’re adults now and we want you to do what’s best for you.”  
“Talia’s right, you two should take these opportunities. Mom, Uncle Phil chose well when he asked you to be his second in command. Dad, you could really help strengthen America’s defenses as SECDEF. Go for it,” James says.  
As Steve and Tasha commit to their new careers, Clint decides it’s time he reveals his and Bobbi’s new positions at SHIELD as well.  
“Guess there’s no point in keeping our secret either,” Clint says. “Bobbi and I have also been offered new positions at SHIELD. Phil offered me the job of firearms and sniper training, and Bobbi the job of armed and unarmed combat instructor.”  
This is news to both Tasha and Becca. The former didn’t know Phil had made these offers, and Becca wanted some more time with her parents again before she went off to college.  
“So all of you are joining SHIELD? I’ve only been gone for a year, I didn’t think things would change this drastically while I was gone,” Becca comments.  
“Change is inevitable,” Clint tells her. “But it doesn’t have to be a bad thing. You said before you left that you wanted to go to college.”  
“I did, but while I was away, I realized college may not be for me. I grew up hearing about the missions and seeing you all go off to fight. Just like Talia and James did. Maybe I should join SHIELD as well.”  
“Becca, whatever you decide we support you,” Bobbi says. “Just be sure you’re making the decision you want, and not doing this because it’s what we do.”  
“This is what I want. Ever since we were in our early teens, you and Aunt Tasha have trained us for this. I want to be a SHIELD agent and an Avenger.”  
“That’s possible,” says Phil. “Being one doesn’t have to exclude you from being the other. If you want it to work that way Becca, it can.”  
“Then we’re all doing this together, Becks,” Talia says. “We’re a team. Training with SHIELD might be good for me too.”  
“Okay, Becca, you just need a call sign. What’s it going to be,” Bobbi asks.  
With a brief pause, Becca thinks about what her new code name should be. Thinking back to the crossbow she learned to use, the answer for her is clear.  
“I want to call myself Sharpshot,” she replies, and Clint and Bobbi both like the name.  
“Strong name,” Clint says. “Looks like our daughters are going to be partners like we were Nat.”  
“I didn’t even think about that,” Talia says. “It’s not a bad idea, what do you say Becks?”  
“Liberty and Sharpshot, sounds like a good team to me.”  
“Hey don’t forget about me,” James says with a laugh. “What am I, chopped liver?”  
“Come on James, you still like to play the lone gun slinger,” Talia jokes.   
The team gets a good laugh in, as the trio looks forward to their future.


	3. First Weeks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio of Avengers children and their first weeks as SHIELD Academy Students.

If you were to ask Becca, James and Talia they would say their first weeks at the SHIELD academy were easy. The truth is that they didn’t really fit in. Most of the agents in training had been there for years already. They had formed their own social groups and all of them watched the new kids warily, even with some jealousy. Being the children of Earth’s Mightiest would make the three of them outcasts. As they all sit in Becca’s room after a class the unspoken question they’re all thinking finally pops up.  
“I know we’ve only been here a couple of weeks now,” Talia says, “but do you ever get the feeling that maybe we shouldn’t be here?”  
“Come on, sis. That’s just your nerves talking,” James says as he tries to reassure her. “I know that we haven’t made a lot of friends yet, but we should give it time.”  
“James, no offense, but Talia’s right. I don’t know about you, but everyone seems to be avoiding us. Our instructors are all great and made us feel welcome, but the others, you know, in training like we are, they all seem resentful.”  
“Come on, Becks, you’re just being paranoid. They’re just nervous; you’re the Daughter of Hawkeye and Mockingbird. Talia and I are the twin children of Captain America and the Black Widow. Their nervousness comes because our lineage includes the three greatest SHIELD agents and an American Icon.”  
“Still, I think we should keep our guard up,” Talia replies. “I’ve already had a verbal run in with another student.”  
“Verbal, huh? If it didn’t get physical, what are you worried about,” James asks.  
“It didn’t get physical because Uncle Clint happened to be walking through the hall.”  
“So, Dad kept it from escalating. How did it start,” Becca asks.  
“Some girl named Chase and her friend Destiny confronted me about a couple of chapters in the new textbook.”  
“That’s all, a couple of chapters? Seems like a bad reason to verbally attack someone,” James replies. “What exactly did they say?”  
“What they said isn’t important. They knew my name, and they were very antagonistic.”  
“Never mind about that,” James comments. “What exactly are these chapters about?”  
“You still haven’t familiarized yourself with the reading, big brother? If you had, you’d know that one chapter was all about how Mom tricked the God of Mischief. The other was about Dad’s elevator fight with the Strike Team.”  
“So they’re basically afraid of what our parents can do,” Becca finally says. “That could lead to problems for us down the road. You’re right Talia; we should keep our guard up.”  
“With what everyone knows about our parents, by extension they fear us, either because we have the same abilities, or because they think we’ll get Mom and Uncle Clint to fight our battles for us.”  
“Come on, you’re both being paranoid. We’ve never needed Mom, Dad, Uncle Clint or Aunt Bobbi to fight our battles before.”  
“Think about that, James. High School was different, no one knew who we were there,” Talia says. “And that’s because Mom and Dad used the identities of Grant and Natalie Rogers to enroll us in school.”  
“Yeah, the Academy is a whole different ball game,” Becca agrees.  
“Whatever, I’m not worried. We can more than take care of ourselves if it does get physical.”  
“Of course, and it just may go that route. Before Uncle Clint walked through they said we got lucky to be here. We didn’t have to earn our place like they did. Even with Uncle Clint watching, they told me we should all watch our backs.”  
“Gutsy move,” Becca comments. “Did Dad say anything?”  
“No, but he did have his bow in hand, and his quiver loaded. Most likely on his way to the next class. We should take this seriously James.”  
“You’re right, Talia. I didn’t want to think those two could be that serious, but I’ve heard that they can be troublemakers.”  
“That’s not all I’ve heard. Chase and Destiny are constantly challenging the authority here,” Becca says. “All they need is an opportunity to start something, and they will.”  
“So we keep our guard up. Anyway, the faculty is having a welcome back party for the students tonight. We ought to go. Might help us make some friends, or allies,” James says.  
“A party, really? You think that’s a good idea brother?”  
“Come on sis, no one would try anything there, too many witnesses. We all need to let loose and have a little fun.”  
“Sounds like a good idea, I’m in,” Becca says. “You coming, Talia?”  
“No, I’m going to stay in, do a little studying.”  
“Just like Dad, always with your nose in a book. If you change your mind, you know where to find us.”  
“Yeah, I’ll keep that in mind, Jimmy. You two have fun.”  
“Since Talia won’t be coming, why don’t you and I go together, Becks? We can watch each-others backs,” James says.  
“Good idea, I’ll meet you in an hour,” she replies.  
James and Talia go back to their own separate rooms. While he is getting ready, she goes back to studying, and tries not to think about the confrontation from earlier. Something about Chase and Destiny bothers her, but she can’t figure out what. Before he goes to get Becca, James asks her one more time if she’ll come.  
“You sure you don’t want to come, Talia? The three of us can look out for each other better if we’re all there.”  
“No, James, I really need to study. Besides, I know you’re interested in Becca. I’d just be a third wheel. Seriously go have fun.”  
“I’m not interested in Becca, little sister,” James says, slightly annoyed.  
“Whatever, don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”  
“Suit yourself, I’ll see you later.”


	4. Welcoming Recruits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Becca and James are at the orientation for students. Talia is attacked on her way to the library.

James left still denying to himself that he was interested in Becca. Sure they grew up together, and he’s only two years older than her. He chides himself for even having these thoughts, because he feels relationships like this can be dangerous. As he goes to meet with her, he puts all this aside and focuses on enjoying the party, but also knows he has to stay alert with a target on their backs. Talia is on her way to the library to study, and she would discover that her intuition about keeping her guard up was a good idea.  
“Hey Rogers,” a voice shouts out from behind her.  
Turning around slowly she searches for the person who called her out. She knew this would be coming and expected the person in front of her.  
“What can I do for you Chase,” Talia asks.  
“I warned you to watch your back. You got in because your Mom is Deputy Director. You don’t belong here. Do yourself a favor; get out now before you get hurt.”  
“Are you threatening me; Chase? That won’t be good for either of us.”  
“If you want to take that as a threat, then yeah it is. Come on; let’s see what you’ve got.”  
“I’m not going to fight you. Not here, not now.”  
“Just as I thought, you’re a coward. I bet you were an embarrassment to your parents.”  
Chase just crossed a line and Talia knows it. From an early age her parents always had an honest sense of pride in her accomplishments. She may take more after her father, but she still has the same fire her mother does. There are some things you just don’t say to a Rogers.  
“All right, Chase if you really want to do this, fine. You and me one on one.”  
The fight begins in the narrow hallway. Neither of the girls are acquainted with the others fighting style so the first punches thrown are to size each other up. Chase begins to get overconfident as Talia falls back into defense. As the battle goes on Talia looks for weaknesses in her opponent like she was trained to do. Chase takes this moment to taunt her.  
“You know you’re pathetic Rogers. I’ve been in control of this fight since the beginning. No doubt you learned to fight from your father. I’ve heard he always took a defensive strategy.”  
“You don’t know about jack about my Dad, Chase,” Talia replies angrily. “If he ever used defense only, it’s because he was looking for a better way to end a fight.”  
“Like I said, pathetic. It’s amazing he was able to survive as long as he has.”  
This comment only makes Talia angrier, and she finally goes on the offensive, surprising Chase with her strength. When the momentum of the fight begins to change, Destiny rushes in to help her friend as she had been watching.  
“Come on Chase, she can’t beat the both of us,” Destiny says. “We work together and we can finish this.”  
The fight intensifies as Talia is now outnumbered. Still she is holding her own as the fight moves from the hallway towards the assembly hall where the agents, both new and old are listening to a speech from Director Coulson. James and Becca are slightly bored just like the rest of the attendees who thought this was going to be a party, and hear the commotion from outside as the doors break open. The room falls silent as the three combatants fall through, and Talia is restrained by Destiny while Chase punches her in the stomach. From the stage Coulson tries to regain decorum with a shout.  
“THAT’S ENOUGH! Clint, Bobbi, go put a stop to this fight. I don’t care who started it, but I want answers.”  
Before Clint and Bobbi can get there James and Becca have already pulled Chase and Destiny away from Talia.   
“Looks like it’s already been stopped; Phil,” Clint says. “We’ll keep things from escalating; you might want to get over there.”  
With an air of authority that reminds everyone in the hall of Nick Fury, Phil strides through all the agents as they part the way for him so he can make his way to the back of the room.  
“All right, what happened and who started it,” Phil asks, not beating around the bush.  
“Well, Director, I just wanted to study with Talia and she threw a punch at me without provocation,” Chase says.  
“Chase, I believe that like I believe HYDRA is nothing more than a group of over glorified ballet dancers,” he replies. “James, Becca, you can let them go.”  
“I’m sorry, Phil, but I’m not releasing this one until I know my sister is okay,” James replies.  
“Wait a minute, why do you get to call the Director by his first name,” Destiny asks.  
“That is none of your concern, Destiny. Now, Talia what happened,” he asks with genuine concern in his voice.  
“I was on my way to the library to study, Phil. Chase came up behind me and threatened me. I didn’t want to fight, even tried to talk her down, until she insulted my parents and our reason for being here.”  
“She’s lying Phil; it’s just like I told you, she started the fight,” Chase says again.  
“Chase, you will address me as Director Coulson, not Phil. I have already heard from your instructors that you have caused trouble, and on more than one occasion.”  
“But every time anything has happened I’ve only been defending myself, right Destiny?”  
“Always, Chase never does anything without being provoked first.”  
“So you were provoked into starting that fire in the gym,” Bobbi says from the stage.  
“Well not as such, but…” Chase pauses because she has no defense for that action.  
“I’ve heard enough,” Phil says. “As of right now, you two are on indefinite probation. If I hear of even one more situation like this, you’ll be kicked out. Do I make myself clear?”  
Chase and Destiny have no choice but to accept these terms, they quietly say together:  
“Yes, Sir.”  
“Good, all of you agents, this assembly is over. You’re dismissed.”  
The rest of the agents all file out of the room, but James, Becca and Talia are asked to stay behind, and the med staff is called in to check for injuries. Clint and Bobbi have come down from the stage and joined Phil with the kids.  
“You all right, sis,” James asks.  
“I’m fine; I had Chase on the ropes until Destiny joined the fight.”  
“Maybe so, but you’ve got a black eye developing,” he replies.  
“James, could you step back a moment while the Doctor examines her, please,” Phil requests.  
“Of course.”  
Doctor Ellis begins examining Talia for injuries. Thankfully he doesn’t find anything serious.  
“Okay, Director, aside from the black eye, she has a few bruised ribs, and a sprained wrist. She should be all healed up in about a week. Until then, I recommend no strenuous activities.”  
“Well it could have been worse. Thank you Doctor.”  
As the doctor leaves, Phil goes back to addressing the kids he watched grow up.  
“I’m glad you’re going to be okay, Talia. But whenever I’m here you need to address me as Director. I’m not worried about me, but as this incident shows, you three will have to be extra careful, especially if it seems that I’m showing favoritism.”  
“You’re not showing that,” Becca says. “We did earn our place here, Chase is just jealous of us all.”  
“Of course she is Becca,” Bobbi speaks up. “Nevertheless we’re going to have to treat you like all the other Agents. We love the three of you, but we don’t want to put you in any danger.”  
“I know, Mom. But what about when this happens again?”  
“I don’t think this will,” Clint says. “Everyone saw that Talia was holding her own against two opponents. And they know you three are an efficient team. They’ll think twice before doing this again.”  
“Are Mom and Dad going to hear about this,” Talia asks, nervously.  
“Talia, you know they both will. They made us all promise to look after you while you’re here,” Phil says. “Now I know you’re worried, but you know that I know Steve and Natasha very well. She’ll be proud of you and Steve, well you are his baby girl, but he won’t fly off the handle. They let you make your own choices, the only way they’ll get more involved if there is a more serious threat.”  
“Come on guys, let’s go get some rest,” James says.  
As they leave for their rooms, Bobbi, Clint and Phil all look at each other.  
“So who’s going to tell Steve and Nat,” Clint asks.  
Phil sighs and says: “I will, Natasha and I have a meeting with the President and Steve in the morning.”


	5. Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil and Nat are in a brief meeting with Steve and the President. Phil has to explain the incident at the academy to them. Naturally Steve goes into overprotective father mode.

The meeting between President Jacobs, Steve, Phil and Tasha started very smoothly. Jacobs merely wanted to check in with how SHIELD was running, and get an overall assessment of the threat from a month ago. With these discussions resolved and everything in order Phil and Tasha are accompanying Steve back to his office. They can both see how nervous Phil is and know something has him concerned. As they enter the office Steve takes the seat behind his desk and Tasha sits on the arm of his chair resting a hand on his shoulder.  
“All right, Phil. You’ve been tense since you picked me up for the meeting this morning, what’s going on,” Tasha asks.  
“Yeah, buddy, as we walked back here, the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife,” Steve says.  
“Steve, I see that you have your shield hanging on the wall behind your desk, it’s a nice decoration,” Phil says, stalling.  
“You’re stalling, Phil. What’s wrong,” Tasha asks again.  
“There was an incident at the Academy last night. Talia and another agent in training got in a fight.”  
“A fight,” Steve asks incredulously. “I doubt Talia started it. We taught her too well for that.”  
“She didn’t start it. She was simply trying to defend herself, until it became a two on one attack.”  
“Two on one, Phil? I hope the aggressors were dealt with properly,” Tasha says.  
“They are both on indefinite probation. One more incident and they’re out of the academy.”  
Steve speaks up, and he is extremely angry at what he sees as a slap on the wrist.  
“Indefinite probation. With all due respect Coulson, they deserve worse than that. You don’t just attack someone without provocation. You should have kicked them out immediately.”  
“Steve, calm down. This is the first violent act they’ve committed. They’re being watched by Clint and Bobbi. If it happens again, I’ll know about it.”  
“Don’t tell me to calm down, Phil. These two attacked my daughter, if I had been there…” Tasha interrupts him in an effort to calm him down.  
“Honey, if either of us had been there it would have embarrassed her. We trusted them to make their own choices. Talia is smarter than me, and tougher than you. She can handle this.”  
Slightly calmer, Steve still has to know the extent of the fight.  
“Were there any injuries,” he asks.  
“A sprained wrist, a black eye and some bruised ribs. The Academy’s Doctor assures me she’ll be fine in a week. You should be proud of her, she held her own against the both of them, and James and Becca were able to stop the fight.”  
“I am proud of her, Phil. I just don’t want her getting seriously hurt.”  
“Somehow, Steve, I don’t think she’ll be in any danger of that,” Phil replies. “Anyway, I better get back to headquarters. Natasha, see you in an hour for the debriefing.”  
“I’ll be there.”   
As Coulson leaves, Tasha stays behind to talk, leaning on his desk.  
“Steve, are you going to be okay?”  
“I’ll be fine, Tasha, I just got angry.”  
“You got more than angry; I could feel it the way your shoulders tensed up. Don’t worry, I’ll call Clint and see what I can find out about these two trainees.”  
“I know you will. I heard the anger in your voice too. I have no doubts you’ll get the information, even if Clint can’t,” Steve smiles at her.  
“You know me so well. I’ll see you at home. Love you.”  
“Love you, have a good day.”


	6. Sparring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Talia and Becca are sparring when they meet two other students, one with a threat, the other a new friend.

It’s been a week and half since the fight. Talia has healed well and every trainee in the academy gives her a wide berth when she walks through the halls. Most of them look at her, James and Becca now with respect. The ones that do are glad someone stood up to Chase. There are just a few who still antagonize the trio, Chase and Destiny’s friends. There would be another incident during a sparring session between Talia and Becca.  
“You’ve gotten better with self-defense since you were gone for that year Becks; you did some training overseas didn’t you?”  
“Yeah, Talia I did. I studied savate and parkour. I can teach you them as well.”  
Before Talia can answer, they are interrupted.  
“Hey Barton, hey Rogers, you two did a great job convincing Coulson you didn’t start that fight. Chase told everyone how it really went down.”  
“I didn’t start the fight,” Talia replies. “Chase is an incurable liar. Who the hell are you anyway, other than Chase’s lap dog?”  
“Lap dog, that’s cute. Not that it matters, but my name is Frankie. Chase warned you once. Perhaps I should remind you one more time. The three of you should leave before you get seriously hurt. We’re not going to warn you again.”  
“First of all, I don’t see any we,” Becca says, “I see you. I’m getting really tired of these stupid threats. You want to hurt my sister; you have to go through me first.”  
“I can do that. It wouldn’t be that hard. But discretion is the better part of valor. Chase says you have two days to pack up and leave. After that, you’re responsible for the consequences.”  
“Like you know anything about valor, little girl. I was wrong, you’re not a lap dog, you’re just a messenger,” Talia says. “Tell Chase if she wants us to leave, then she can make us.”  
“I’ll tell her, but you may not like what comes of it.”  
As Frankie starts walking forward like she wants to start a fight, another agent is walking past the gym with James.  
“Hey, there a problem here,” he asks.  
“Not one that is any of your concern Hunter,” Frankie replies. “Get lost.”  
“Not a chance, I believe they basically told you the conversation was finished. You threaten my friend’s sister, you threaten me.”  
“So you’re throwing your lot in with them. Chase did say you were a loser, that’s why she dumped you.”  
“Chase’s view of our past is skewed. Like a lot of things in her mind. Get lost Frankie.”  
Frankie looks back at Talia and Becca.  
“This isn’t over. You can leave voluntarily, or we can make it happen for you.”  
“Oh I know it’s not over,” Talia replies. “You can walk away, or I can break your knees and have you carried away.”  
Frankie leaves, realizing Talia is serious. She’s not sure how much of the super soldier serum got passed down from Captain America to his daughter, but it’s already been proven that she is capable of defending herself in a fight. As the tension settles down, the other agent finally gets the chance to introduce himself.  
“Listen I want to say I’m sorry. Those three don’t take it well when anyone new comes into the Academy. Chase, Destiny and Frankie think they rule this school. Then you three come in and with your pedigree, everything changed.”  
“You don’t need to apologize for their stupidity,” Talia says. “She called you Hunter, that it or you got a last name?”  
“Hunter Dugan. I have to say it’s an honor to meet the twin children of Cap and the Widow, and the daughter of Hawkeye and Mockingbird.”  
“Dugan, that name sounds very familiar. You aren’t by chance related to…” Talia pauses.  
“Yeah, Dum Dum Dugan. He’s my great-great grandfather. I’ve heard all the stories about the Howling Commandos.”  
“So you’re just as much a legacy as we are,” Becca says.  
“I prefer to not think of myself that way,” he replies. “I’m just another guy.”  
“Well, it’s good to see we’ve found one new friend here. If my brother gets along with you, there’s hope for him yet,” Talia laughs.  
“I’m working on that, anyway, I have to get going. I hope I get to meet your Dad someday. Catch you later, Jimmy.”  
As Hunter leaves, both Becca and Talia look at James inquisitively.   
“You let him call you Jimmy? I thought I was the only one allowed to call you that brother.”  
“Knock it off, Talia. We’ve got a friend and ally here,” he replies.  
“It was just a joke, I’m glad you made a friend.”  
Finally having a moment of peace after the first month, the three of them finally feel like they belong at the Academy.


	7. Battle Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chase and Destiny start planning their next fight with Talia and Becca. Frankie doesn't expect what will happen to her.

Chase and Destiny weren’t thrilled with the news Frankie delivered. They thought that one more threat would finally get their point across. And they had deniability because it was Frankie who made the threat. At this point Chase finally realizes she has to take more drastic measures.  
“I can’t believe they still won’t leave. They just waltz in here and think they own the halls because of their lineage. You’re positive you told them two days,” she asks Frankie.  
“Absolutely, they’re stubborn, Chase. It must come from their parents.”  
“Then we’ll have to be more serious about this. We need a plan to attack them without incriminating ourselves.”  
“I don’t see how that’s possible Chase, Barton and Morse are watching our every move,” Destiny states. “And now that Hunter is involved as well…”  
“Hunter’s an idiot, D. All the Dugans are. All it takes is someone pretty to distract them, they’re almost as bad as a Stark in that respect.”  
“All I’m saying is we should be cautious. If we’re going to do this we can’t be seen. Remember if we get kicked out, our plans to bring the Academy down are finished.”  
“You just gave me a great idea, Destiny. I know how we won’t be seen.”  
“How’s that Chase,” Frankie asks.  
“I’ve been working on these for a few weeks.” She opens up her footlocker and pulls out two costumes. “These will be our new identities. With masks on, no one will know who we are, and therefore we won’t get kicked out.”  
“Only two costumes, Chase? Where’s mine,” Frankie asks.  
“You don’t get one. Rogers and Barton are a two woman team, so are Destiny and I. Sorry, Frankie, but you’re dead weight, and I’m dropping you.”  
Frankie is outnumbered and outmatched. She fights back, but Chase and Destiny overwhelm her and she is beaten bad enough that she falls into a coma. While she helped with the fight, Destiny is a little unnerved that it had to go that far. She saw ruthlessness in her friend she’d never seen before.  
“Did you have to really beat Frankie that badly Chase? She’s our friend, I’m sure she wouldn’t have talked.”  
“She’s a liability, Destiny. She knows what we’re planning, and she had to be cut loose. Your family has the same hatred of the Rogers’ and Barton’s that mine does. Don’t wimp out now. You’re a Cross, and I’m a Strucker. This is payback.”  
“I’m not wimping out. I’ve got just as much incentive to get rid of them as you do.”  
“Then act like it. If we can get rid of Talia and Becca, their parents will get involved. That happens and we can not only take the Academy, we can take out four Avengers as well. I create chaos, and you cause dementia. Anarchy will follow.  
“Wait a minute; I think we just think we found our call signs, Chase. You’re Chaos, and I’m Dementia.”  
“Come on D, those are cheesy.”  
“You got a better idea for names, tell me.”  
“All right you have a point. So if those goody goodies don’t leave in two days, we finish the fight I started. But first, we take Frankie to the medical center.” Destiny is shocked that Chase would do this after the beating she met out. “Why are you surprised D, I’m not completely heartless. She won’t remember what happened.”  
“I hope you’re right about that.”  
They pick Frankie up and carry her to the med center. Before they arrive they work out what they’re going to say.  
“I need a doctor,” Chase yells. “Frankie and I were sparring in the gym and she collapsed. She needs help!”  
Chase is faking tears and worry about her friend. When Doctor Ellis comes over he tries to console her long enough to find out what happened.  
“Chase calm down. Tell me what happened.”  
“I don’t know, one minute Frankie and I were sparring, and it wasn’t even a serious session, then she just collapsed. Please help her.”  
“Destiny did you see any of this happen,” the doctor asks.  
“No, I was just passing through the hallway coming back from the library. I heard screams for help and came upon the scene.”  
“All right, we’re going to get her stabilized and see if we can figure out what caused this. Right now, you two should go back to your rooms and we’ll call you if we need any more information.”  
“Do whatever you have to Doctor. She’s one of the few friends we have here. Please help her.”  
“We’ll do what we can Chase. Just go try to get some composure.”  
As they leave, Chase and Destiny feign extreme worry for Frankie. Doctor Ellis is suspicious of their reaction and calls for Agent Barton.  
Clint arrives quickly, while on a break between his classes.  
“What’s up, Doc,” Clint asks as he enters the med center.  
“Agent Barton, I’m glad you got here so fast. I just had a student brought in here. We have her stabilized, but her condition and the description of the incident don’t match up.”  
“Okay, what happened, what has you so confused?’  
“Perhaps it would be better if you see the patient yourself. This way please.”  
“That’s Frankie Williams. What happened?”  
“Well according to what we were told, she collapsed during a sparring session. She’s in a coma. The sparring session was supposedly not serious, but her injuries say otherwise.”  
“All right, describe her injuries for me.”  
“Well Clint, she’s started to show heavy bruising, and her breathing is quite strained. X-Rays show four broken ribs, and she has a dislocated jaw.”  
“That’s not normal for a sparring session. Whoever she was training with obviously meant to cause harm. Who brought her in?”  
“Chase and Destiny. Chase was the opponent, and Destiny claims to have been returning from the library when she heard screams for help.”  
“Why am I not surprised? Something doesn’t add up here, Doc. I’m going to have to review the camera footage. “You’ll let me know if she wakes up?”  
“It may be awhile for that. Even if it happens soon, she will be in no condition to talk.”  
“All right, Bobbi and I will get to work on this. We’ll let you know if we find anything.”  
“We’ll take care of her. Oh, Agent Barton, before you leave, I was wondering if you could put in a call to Dr. Banner. He may be able to help. He has far more experience with super humans after spending so many years with you Avengers.  
“I’ll give him a call. He may be back from Europe and the disease he was consulting on with Dr. Ross.”  
Dr. Ellis goes back to his other patients as Clint leaves to meet with Bobbi and Skye, hopefully to get answers.


	8. Rotten in Denmark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Becca, Hunter, James and Talia are busy planning for the next time they are attacked. Clint and Skye are trying to find out what really happened when Frankie collapsed. Clint presents Becca and Talia with their uniforms.

Becca, James and Talia have come to end of the two days that Frankie said they had to pack up and leave. The three of them made the decision to stay. They know Chase is planning something, but they don’t know the when and where it will be coming. Hunter and James have become inseparable in the last month. The four of them train together, and are always on guard.   
“You know an attack is coming. Chase doesn’t seem like the type to idly threaten,” James says.  
“Of course it’s coming, the first fight she had with me tells me that this one is going to be serious,” Talia replies. “The when and where is what we should be worried about.”  
“I know all of us have been on alert for threats,” Hunter says, “but did you guys hear about Frankie?”  
“Heard she was in a sparring session and collapsed,” Becca replies. “Not really sure I believe that.”  
“Well you shouldn’t. Chase and Destiny were the ones who took her to the med center. Hawkeye has been reviewing video footage for the past two days,” Hunter tells her.  
“Then my Dad will find something. The Barton eye doesn’t miss anything.”  
While the four of them are still discussing the threat level and next moves, Skye thinks she’s found what they’ve been looking for.  
“Hey Barton,” Skye calls to him. “I think we’ve got something.”  
“What is it Skye. I keep coming up empty on my videos.”  
She punches up the last video she had been watching.  
“This is the footage of the gym at the time Chase says she was sparring with Frankie.”  
“Okay, and empty hallway, so…?”  
“Hang on, if I fast forward, here’s the time frame where she supposedly called for help and Destiny was walking through.”  
“Still an empty hallway, which means that they weren’t in the gym,” Clint realizes.  
Skye punches up another video recording to show him.  
“Now this hallway is in the women’s dormitory section, watch.”  
The video plays again, and as Clint watches he sees a door open, Chase and Destiny step out carrying Frankie between them.   
“So Frankie may have collapsed, but it wasn’t in the gym. I’ve been in to check on her and her injuries clearly came from someone giving her a beat down.”  
“Exactly, Clint. My guess is that either Chase or Destiny were responsible for the attack, maybe both of them.”  
“Yeah, but we have no cameras in the rooms. So I have no doubt they did it, but we have no evidence that they can’t refute. We have to wait until Frankie wakes up to give her testimony.”  
“So we can’t accuse them yet. What about Becca and Talia. Have they been attacked again?”  
“No, and it worries me. Something is going on here. Chase and Destiny are behind it, but they’re covering their tracks too well.”  
“Honestly, it worries me too. I know they can handle whatever is thrown at them,” Skye says. “After all, there were times I wanted to pull my hair out when I was babysitting all those years ago.”  
“You really have to bring that up now? I know the kids were a handful…”  
“Relax, Barton, I was just kidding. Point is, we better find out what’s going on before another attack happens.”  
“We don’t have a lot of time for that. I know an attack is coming. I can feel it. More importantly, Steve and Nat are going to be here tomorrow. President Jacobs is concerned about SHIELD. So this is an official visit. Bobbi has security on high alert, and we can’t afford any incidents that could prove detrimental or cast SHIELD in a negative light, like the incident with HYDRA.”  
“Don’t worry Barton. I’ll keep working on this. I’ll get the answers we’re looking for.”  
“I have the utmost faith in your abilities, Skye. Dr. Banner will be arriving soon; we need him to examine Frankie. Call if you get anything.”  
Clint leaves Skye to go check on Becca, James and Talia. She gets back to work, determined to solve the problem. She knows she’d die before letting anything happen to those kids she watched grow up. In James’ room they are still discussing what to do when the next attack comes, when Clint and Bobbi arrive.  
“Hey guys, got a minute,” Bobbi asks.  
“Yeah, we were just talking about what to do when we’re attacked again Mom,” Becca says.  
“Listen, if you keep thinking of when, you’re going to worry yourselves more than is necessary,” Bobbi replies. “It’s good to be on guard, but too much stress will make you paranoid.”  
“But Aunt Bobbi, I was the first of us attacked, and Frankie deliberately threatened me on behalf of Chase. We can’t just sit back and wait for it to happen,” Talia says.  
“And no one is suggesting that you should,” Clint replies. “Just when it does, be prepared. To that end, based on your choice of call signs, we had these uniforms made for you.”  
Clint opens the bag he had carried in and set down. He tosses a red and blue suit to Talia, when she inspects the uniform she also finds a white mask that will cover the upper part of her face. Bobbi hands a uniform to Becca, navy blue with a white arrow in the center of the armored jacket. The girls are both impressed with their new uniforms and Liberty and Sharpshot were officially born.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rotten in Denmark just seemed to fit as a chapter title. Things are definitely rotten at the academy, but no one can figure out what exactly is going on. As a fan of Shakespeare and Hamlet in particular, I liked the idea of "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark" or rather the shortened version that I used for the title.


	9. Visitors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce, Nat and Steve make a visit to the SHIELD Academy. Hunter Dugan embarrasses himself.

The next day Bruce, Natasha and Steve arrived at the Academy. Director Grant was occupied with a dispute between two agents, so Clint was dispatched to greet them.  
“Welcome to the Academy, Secretary Rogers, Dr. Banner, Deputy Director Rogers,” Clint says formally.  
“Clint this may be an official visit, but you don’t have to be overly formal with us,” Steve says to him.  
“Sorry, Steve, Director Grant is all about being formal. Sometimes he acts like he’s got a stick up his ass. It’s no wonder that half the Instructors here hate him.”  
“All right, Clint we’ve been back and forth on the phone a few times about the attack. I hope we’ve got some more Intel on the aggressors in that fight with our daughter,” Tasha says as she takes Steve’s hand.  
Steve tenses up at mention of the fight. With no information coming in he broke four punching bags in succession at the private gym in D.C.  
“Nothing so far, and they haven’t made any more attempts to start another fight yet.”  
“Anyway, Clint I believe Dr. Ellis had a patient you wanted me to check on,” Bruce says. “If you could, I’d like to get to that as soon as possible.”  
“Of course Bruce, Steve, Nat if you’d like to come along, it’ll be a while before Grant is done with his meeting.”  
“Actually, I want to go see James and Talia. It would be good to see how they’re doing,” Steve says.  
“Steve, you go ahead, I’m going to go with Clint. If this patient has any info, it may help us,” Tasha tells him.  
“All right, the med center is this way, James, Talia and Becca are in the gym with Hunter. You go down that hall and it’s three doors down on the right.”  
They all part ways with Steve headed towards the gym. The med center is closer so the trio of Avengers arrive there first.  
“Dr. Ellis, has there been any change in Frankie’s condition,” Clint asks.  
“Agent Barton, she is showing signs of improvement. She woke up a few hours ago, but she is still having trouble speaking. The damage to her jaw was a little more severe than just a dislocation. Part of the bone was broken, we repaired what we could.  
“I see, has she said anything about what caused her coma?”  
“Very little, I don’t think she remembers what happened. That’s normal for the trauma she suffered.”  
Remembering that Bruce and Tasha are there, Clint introduces them.  
“Dr. Ellis, allow me to introduce Dr. Bruce Banner and Deputy Director Natasha Rogers.”  
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Ellis replies. Dr. Banner I have followed your work for years. That virus you found a cure for was remarkable. Director Rogers…” he stops as Tasha speaks up.  
“Please, call me Natasha. Steve’s told me about you. He said you were the attending physician after he was found in the ice, and thawed out. I should thank you; if he hadn’t been found and woken up we never would have met and fallen in love.”  
“And gotten married, how long now?”  
“Twenty-two years. Anyway, shall we check on the patient.”  
“Of Course, you can’t be here long, she is still recovering and we don’t want to cause to much stress on her system.”  
As they follow Dr. Ellis to Frankie’s room, Steve has reached the gym, and watches for a moment. As the sparring session ends, he speaks.  
“You three have gotten so much better at fighting since coming here a few months ago.”  
“Dad, we didn’t know you’d be coming here” Talia says.  
“I’m here because the President is concerned. HYDRA has been making a resurgence in the States again, and he wants to be sure SHIELD has not been infiltrated again.”  
“Come on, Dad, you really think they could get away with that again,” James asks.  
“I’d like to say no, but where HYDRA is concerned, nothing is certain.” Steve looks over at the back of the room where a fourth person is standing, slack jawed and wide eyed. “So who’s the guy in the back who has yet to introduce himself?”  
“Oh, Dad that’s…” Talia doesn’t get to finish as Hunter runs over to them and trips on his feet, falling on his face in front of Captain America.  
“You all right, son,” Steve asks, trying not to laugh.  
“Captain Rogers, it’s an honor to meet me, I mean meet you. I’m you’re biggest fan.”  
“Don’t let Director Coulson hear you say that,” replies Steve offering him a hand up. “What’s your name son?”  
“Hunter…, Hunter Dugan. My Great-Great Grandfather told me stories about you.  
“I thought your name sounded familiar. You’re related to Dum Dum. He was a good soldier, and a great friend.”  
“He respected you more than any other commanding officer he served with, even Colonel Phillips.”  
While Hunter wants to continue talking, they all get an alert on their Academy issued phones, signifying the next class is about to start. Hunter, James and Becca leave, but the class is not one of Talia’s and she watches them go, focusing more on Dugan than her brother and Becca. Steve can’t help but notice.  
“Something bothering you, Talia? You were practically staring a hole into Hunter’s back.”  
“Come on, Dad, he’s just a friend. The very idea that I have a crush on him is laughable.”  
“I never said you had a crush on him. If you’re interested in him, take the chance. The worst he can say is no. And you’d be hard pressed to find someone as good as a Dugan. They’re loud and boisterous, but they’re good people.”  
“Okay, who are you and what have you done with my Dad? You’re actually being supportive of this. Fathers are supposed to hate all their daughters’ boyfriends.”  
“He’s not your boyfriend yet, and obviously you’ve thought about it. I can hate him if you start dating him.”  
As Steve and Talia catch up and she tells him the details of the fight, Bruce has finished examining Frankie, so Clint and Tasha try to get a few questions in.  
“Frankie, I know you’re not fully recovered yet, but I’d really like to know how you fell into the coma,” Clint asks quietly.  
“I don’t remember, one minute I was talking with Chase and Destiny and then blackness. Now I wake up here.”  
“Frankie, you can tell us, and I can personally promise that you there will be no retaliation against you,” Tasha says reassuringly. “Did Chase and Destiny attack you?”  
“I’m sorry Director Rogers, I just don’t remember.”  
“All right, well if you do remember anything, be sure to have Dr. Ellis call us. We’ll be here for the next few hours, taking a tour of the school.”  
As Clint, Tasha, and Bruce leave, Dr. Ellis goes to finish some paperwork in his office. Totally alone, Frankie starts to cry, knowing that these Agents care about her and she doesn’t know why she couldn’t just tell them the truth. She remembered Chase and Destiny attacking her, but she still doesn’t want to believe they really turned on her.  
Outside the med center, the three friends are walking to Clint’s office and not one of them is sure they believe the story they heard.  
“So what do you think, Bruce,” Clint asks.  
“Her injuries are extensive and she will need a lot of time to recover. This wasn’t just a physical attack, it was psychological. I think she remembers more than she wants us to know.”  
“I agree. She’s hiding something,” Tasha says. She may be loyal to her friends, but sometimes that kind of loyalty can get you hurt, if not killed.”  
“Her loyalty already got her hurt. I hope we can get her to realize Chase and Destiny aren’t her friends,” Clint says sullenly. “I know her file says she was an orphan and bullied when she was younger.”  
“If that’s the case partner, maybe I should talk to her one on one. My experience may be useful in this situation.”  
“That’s not a bad idea, Nat. Steve may actually be the better person for the job though. He grew up the same way.”  
Tasha can’t be angry at Clint’s rationalization. She wants to, but she knows he’s right. Steve was the skinny kid who was always bullied before he was chosen for Project Rebirth.  
“I think you’re right, Clint. I’ll talk to Steve and if he’s up for it, we may be able to get answers.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Talia have some father/daughter bonding time. Sometimes every father hates their daughter's boyfriends. Captain America would be no different.


	10. Academy Director

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Nat meet with Director Grant. Talia and Becca go to see Frankie.

Grant was meeting with two agents, but not to settle a dispute like he told Barton. He was berating Chase and Destiny for failing to get the Rogers twins and Barton girl to leave.  
“Every threat you have made since the first fight has failed. At every turn these three defy your attempts. And now I find out that you beat Frankie Williams and put her in a coma. You two are pathetic.”  
“I’m sorry, Director Grant, but we’re being watched by Agent Barton and Agent Morse. We can’t move anywhere without them knowing,” Chase says.  
“Sounds like an excuse to me Strucker. You two are supposed to be the best fighters at the Academy. Your lineage speaks for itself.”  
“Director, Talia and Becca are remarkable fighters,” Destiny finally speaks up. With the combined serums of Captain America and the Black Widow, we don’t stand a chance against Talia, and Becca…”  
“I’m well aware of both of their bloodlines. They were forced on me, just like Hawkeye and Mockingbird. We are treading dangerously close to having our plans discovered. I don’t care what it takes; make them leave, all of them.”  
“Yes, sir,” Chase and Destiny say together.  
“Now, get out of my office, I have a meeting with Captain Goody two shoes and his tamed shrew.”  
Chase and Destiny both leave Grants’ office, and head back to the dorm to try and figure out what it will take to get rid of the Rogers’ siblings and Barton. Steve has rejoined Tasha and Clint as he receives a message from Grant that the meeting is over.  
“All right Nat, Steve, Grant is done with the two agents. He’s requesting your presence.”  
“He’s requesting our presence,” Tasha asks. “I thought we were the ones who called for this meeting.”  
“You were right Clint, I haven’t even met the man yet and I already hate him,” Steve says. “Where’s his office?”  
“It’s just down the hall. I have a class to get to, I’ll check in with you later.”  
Steve and Tasha make their way toward the Director’s office, and talk on the way there.  
“Were you able to get anything from the girl, Tasha?”  
“No, it’s infuriating. We know she received a beating from the two students who threatened Talia, but she won’t admit it. We can do nothing without her testimony.”  
“Why don’t I talk to her? It sounds like a classic bully situation, and you know how much experience I have with bullies.”  
“All too well, just like my time in the Red Room. I was going to ask you to come with me for the next time.”  
“I will, anyway we’re here, let’s see what Grant has to say.”  
As Steve and Tasha are shown into the office, Talia and Becca have gotten word that Frankie has woken up and they decide to go talk to her.  
“I didn’t expect the two of you to come see me,” Frankie says as they enter the med center.  
“Why wouldn’t we,” Talia asks. “Because you threatened us? I don’t think you were really responsible for that.”  
“Then your thinking is wrong. I did that all on my own.”  
“I don’t believe that either Frankie,” Becca says.  
“I don’t care what you believe. And if you’re here for any reason other than to tell me you’re leaving the academy, save your breath.”  
“We’re not leaving,” Talia replies. “And we’re not going to let Chase and Destiny hurt you again. Come on Becks, I think we’re done here.”  
As they leave, Frankie breaks down. She doesn’t know how they knew the truth, but now she’s afraid of what Chase and Destiny will do next. As she thinks about this Steve and Tasha are still in with Director Grant. The discussion is not going well for him.  
“All right Director, how can you possibly run an Academy where you don’t even see students being threatened in the minor scenario and one being beaten so badly that she was in a coma,” Steve asks furiously.  
“I beg your pardon, Secretary Rogers, but this is a very large campus, and I can’t possibly see everything that goes on, that is also the responsibility of the instructors. And since we’re on that point, why did neither Agent Barton nor Agent Morse bring this to my attention?”  
“From what I’ve been told, Agents Barton and Morse did attempt to bring this to your attention. They were informed that you were too busy to deal with it.”  
“You’ll have to forgive me on that, Mr. Secretary, but if they had come to me I would have handled it personally.”  
Tasha knows he’s lying and she calls him on it.  
“Is that why Director Coulson handled the situation at the orientation while you were nowhere to be found?”  
“You’ll have to excuse me for not being able to attend orientation. I was dealing with a family matter that evening, Natasha, and…”  
“First off, it’s Deputy Director Rogers to you, Grant. Secondly you were appointed to this position by Phil, and I will not have you making a mockery of the Academy. While Director Coulson oversees all of SHIELD; this school is one of my responsibilities. I worked with Councilman Fury. I would hate to have him come down here to breathe down your neck. I’m far nicer than he is.”  
“With all due respect, Mr. Secretary, Deputy Director, I believe that you are letting your personal attachments get in the way of what is best for all the students here.”  
Tasha steps back, having heard enough and watches as Steve puts his fist down with a loud thump, denting the desk.  
“Listen up, Grant! I’m only going to say this once. The fact that our children attend this academy has nothing to do with how we do our jobs. If any more students are threatened, or attacked, it will be your neck on the line, and Agent Barton will be given your job.”  
“You have no authority to do that, you don’t work for SHIELD,” Grant replies shakily.  
“You’re right, I don’t. Tasha, call Fury.”  
She pulls out her phone and as she prepares to dial the number Grant’s eyes widen in fear. Fury may be on the council now, but anyone who works for SHIELD knows what he is capable of.  
“All right, I’m sure we can settle this without bringing Nick Fury in. I’ll find out what happened and you’ll have my report on the situation by 0800 tomorrow.  
“We had better have it,” Tasha says. “Good Day, Director Grant.  
When they are out of earshot of Grant, Tasha reacts to Steve’s outburst.  
“That was an interesting display back there, Steve. I don’t think Grant expected you to put your hand through his desk.”  
“Sweetheart, I only wanted to get my point across. When he accused us of letting our personal attachments get in the way, it was like being back at the hearing when I was discharged as Captain America.”  
“I remember how that turned out. But I know you to well, babe. That’s not what’s bothering you.”  
“You can still read me like a book. Something about Grant doesn’t feel right. He’s got some sort of ulterior motive here.”  
“I get that same feeling, Steve. So what are we going to do about it?”  
“First thing, I need to talk to Frankie, was that her name?”  
“Yeah, and then what,” Tasha asks.  
“Then we go undercover and find out what Grant is hiding.”  
Tasha smiles at Steve, sometimes she still needs to be the spy she was trained to be. For him to suggest it reminds her not only why she fell in love with him, but of why they work so well together.  
“I like that plan, I bet the report he prepares for us will be falsified information.”  
Knowing that Grant was up to something, Steve and Tasha rescheduled their departure for D.C. for the following Monday.


	11. Revelation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frankie decides to tell the truth about what happened to her. Hunter asks about Steve and Nat, which leads to fluff between him and Talia.

Frankie had been thinking a lot about what Talia and Becca had said to her when they visited the med ward. She also thought about the attack from Chase and Destiny. She, Chase and Destiny had grown up together, part of her still didn’t want to believe her friends could do this to her. Lying there she begins to think back over all the years they’ve known each other.  
“They were supposed to be my friends. I covered for them so many times over the years. The shoplifting, underage smoking, I was always the look-out. Looking back they blamed me for what they did. I always took it, took the fall for them. I’m not going to do it anymore.”  
Returning from her thoughts, Frankie calls for a nurse so she can ask for someone.  
“Frankie, are you alright,” the nurse asks as she comes into her room.  
“I’m fine. I want to speak to Agent Barton or Agent Morse. I have something I need to say to them.”  
“I’ve spoken with Agent Barton. While he is in a class at the moment, he informed me that Secretary Rogers and Deputy Director Rogers are coming to see you.”  
“I’ve already spoken with Director Rogers once. I’m not sure she can help, but maybe Captain America can.”  
“They should be here in a few moments. They just finished a meeting with Director Grant.”  
Frankie waits for her visitors and tries to relax, knowing the importance of the decision she is about to make. While Steve and Tasha are on their way to the medical ward, their daughter is having a conversation one on one with Hunter.  
“You know Talia; your Dad isn’t what I expected at all.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Well from the stories I heard, he seemed larger than life. The way Dum Dum spoke he always seemed to be in awe of Captain America. The description made him sound like a God in mortal form. But after meeting him, I realize he’s just a normal guy.”  
“That’s my Dad. He’s never had an ego because of his abilities. He just wants to do the right thing for everyone.”  
“Then how did he and your Mom get together? Her life was all about lies and not trusting anyone. It seems like they wouldn’t be compatible.”  
“Mom was a spy, yes. She had covers upon covers to hide in plain sight. But she once told me that they got together because he was a man out of time, and she was a woman out of place. Neither of them could really trust anyone, and when SHIELD was infiltrated by HYDRA, they had no one to trust but each other. Uncle Clint once said that they were two sides of the same coin. It took them two years of being partners to realize it.”  
“It still doesn’t make any sense though. How can two people so fundamentally different…” Talia interrupts his train of thought.  
“You know Hunter, when you said you wanted to talk I didn’t think it would be all about my parents.”  
“I didn’t just want to talk about your parents. I wanted to talk about us.”  
“What us? We’re friends of course, but I didn’t think there was any more to it than that.”  
“Ever since I met you three months ago I’ve been dancing around this train of thought. Part of me doesn’t think you’d go for a guy like me.”  
“Why don’t you think I’d go for a guy like you? Hunter are you trying to ask me out?”  
“Well yeah, I am. There’s this costume ball coming up in a few days that the faculty is throwing. Would you like to go?”  
“I was planning on going. I heard the costume theme is Heroes of the Past. Yes, I’ll go with you.”  
Talia already knows that James is taking Becca to the same ball, and she was hoping Hunter would ask her. She’s actually excited for this, considering the talk with her Dad. Little do the four of them know that Chase and Destiny will use this party to start a new attack.


	12. Medical Ward

Steve and Tasha had just arrived in the med ward and only had a few moments to speak with Frankie. She is still recovering and Bruce had just left to go back to the tower after a final examination.  
“Frankie, we heard you wanted to speak to us,” Tasha says.  
“Yes, Director. I’ve remembered what caused my coma. I was hoping to speak to Agent Barton, but he is still in a class.”  
“You can tell us what happened,” Steve says. “We have arranged for protection for you against any type of retaliation.”  
Slowly, quietly Frankie begins to speak about her youth.  
“Do either of you know what it’s like to be bullied your whole life? From a very young age I was always a target for bullies.”  
“I know very well what it’s like to be bullied, Frankie. Before I became Captain America I was a target, just like you were.”  
“One day, I couldn’t take it anymore. The latest bully was more enthusiastic than the others. But then Chase and Destiny came along and stopped her. I felt like I’d finally found real friends. So over the years we bonded and always looked out for each other. At least that’s what I thought. I realize now, they only wanted me around so I could take the fall for them. I don’t want to do that anymore. I didn’t pass out in a sparring session or while talking to them. They attacked me, I’m not a bad fighter, but they overwhelmed me…” she pauses, near tears.  
“Frankie, you don’t have to say anymore,” Tasha says and places a comforting hand on her shoulder.  
“I need to, Director. They aren’t going to stop until someone gets seriously hurt. Your twins, and Agent Barton’s daughter are their targets. I just thought they wanted them to leave. There is something far more serious they have planned.”  
“Do you know what that is,” Steve asks.  
“No, they used me to threaten James, Becca and Talia. Whatever it is, it’s going to happen soon. Director Grant is in on it, maybe even calling the shots.”  
Steve and Tasha both know what this young girl is feeling very well. Both of them experienced something similar in their youth. Steve was the skinny kid, and Tasha, was just as much a victim as he was, but as a pawn of the K.G.B.  
“Thank you, Frankie. Sometimes the worst bullies are the ones you don’t see coming. You should get some more rest, Agent Barton and I will make sure security guards your room,” Tasha calmly tells her.  
Before they leave, Frankie makes a request of them.  
“Would you tell Talia and Becca I’m sorry. I made a mistake by believing what Chase and Destiny told me.”  
Steve gives her shoulder a soft squeeze, as confirmation that the message will be passed along, but also as a way of saying everything will be okay.


	13. Costume Ball

SHIELD doesn’t often throw parties at the academy. The upper level agents feel that it is a distraction for the recruits that can only lead to trouble. This party is different. It is a costume ball intended to honor the agency’s past while also looking to the future. For the students it is a chance to relax due to the grueling nature of their classes and the training. While the Instructors as well as Director Grant will be attendance, Steve and Tasha will use the time to go undercover to find out what is really going on. Becca, Hunter, James and Talia will try to enjoy themselves, but Chase and Destiny have other plans.  
“Come on Chase, do you really think this party is the right time to start a fight with Becca and Talia again,” Destiny asks.  
“This is the perfect chance. Frankie woke up, and it won’t be long before she rats us out, if she remembers. Grant is counting on us to get this done.”  
“But really, the costume ball, wouldn’t that be a little obvious? We’re going to stick out like a sore thumb.”  
“We’ll be in costume, no one will recognize us. D, this is our chance to prove that we’re better than them. Now I don’t want to hear anymore whining out of you.”  
“I’m not whining. Are you still questioning my resolve,” Destiny puts a little more edge into her voice, these accusations have begun to bother her.  
Chase stops speaking for a moment, and the silence becomes deafening. After five minutes of staring at each other she speaks again.  
“There’s the fire I’ve been looking for. I know we can do this.”  
As they begin suiting up in their costumes, Talia has gone to Hunter’s room to meet him before they go to the gym. When he answers the door, she is amused by the costume he chose.  
“Wow, I can’t believe you really decided to dress up as Dum Dum Dugan. The moustache, is it…,” she pauses.  
“It’s real,” Hunter replies. “I can’t very well honor my Great-Great Grandfather without going all in, can I?”  
“No, I suppose you can’t. So what do you think of my costume?”  
“You like a normal SHIELD Agent. Doesn’t seem like much of a costume, no offense.”  
“It’s not just a SHIELD uniform. It’s my Mom’s. She wore this one when she helped Tony defeat Hammer and Vanko.”  
Hunter is about to reply when James and Becca enter the room. James is dressed in a version of the uniform his Dad wore when he liberated the HYDRA base in ’45, and Becca is dressed in a British Army uniform, like Peggy’s.   
“Come on guys we’re going to be late if you stand around talking,” James says.  
“Says the guy who shows up late to everything,” Hunter says laughing at his friend.  
The four all get a good laugh and after James asks to borrow the shield for his costume they all make their way down to the gym for the ball. With the party under way, Steve and Tasha are breaking into Grant’s office to find out what he is up to. Steve goes to the filing cabinet and Tasha to the computer.  
“You know Steve, if Tony were here he’d make a joke about you and technology,” Tasha says while hacking Grant’s files.  
“Yeah, but sometimes if you want to hide incriminating evidence, the best place is in plain sight. No one would expect it.”  
After a few moments, Tasha calls to him.  
“Hey Steve, I think I got something. The file is called Project Anarchy.”  
“Pull it up, I found a file on Chase and Destiny. He’s recruited them for some sort of terrorist plot. I find it strange that their last names are omitted from the file.”  
“That’s a little strange. He’s hiding something big.”  
Reading through the file, they see that Grant has ties to HYDRA, but is in the midst of creating his own organization called the Anarchists. Chase and Destiny were his first recruits.   
“Sounds an awful lot like Flag-Smasher. Do you think Phil knows about this,” Steve asks.  
“Probably not, Grant is a highly decorated Agent with SHIELD. During the events with HYDRA he was on the front lines of the battle. He helped Carter fight Rumlow.”  
“Hiding in plain sight. I knew there was a reason I didn’t trust him.”   
“Well we know about his plans now, and he can be stopped. Looks like Captain America and the Black Widow are going back into action.”  
As Steve and Tasha begin discussing strategy, the party is still going strong. Most of the Instructors are there and dressed in SHIELD tactical jumpsuits. Clint and Bobbi are there and in their Hawkeye and Mockingbird uniforms. All the students are enjoying themselves when two smoke bombs are thrown through the door.  
“Smoke grenade,” Clint yells. Get the vents open! We need fresh air circulating in here!”  
Several students have already passed out because of smoke inhalation. As they covered their faces as best as they could Becca, Hunter, James and Talia have stayed calm and helped evacuate several of their classmates. They didn’t expect that as soon as the room was clear they would be attacked.


	14. Party Foul

Before the smoke bombs were thrown into the room, Director Grant had slithered out of the gym. As the smoke dissipates, two figures walk into the room dressed in tactical gear, and masked. Immediately they move forward towards Talia and Becca.  
“You were all warned, leave or face the consequences,” a female voice says.  
“Hey look, Becks, Chase and Destiny found new lap dogs to do their dirty work,” Talia comments, with slight amusement.  
“We’re not their lap dogs,” the other aggressor says. “We’re here to fight you. They couldn’t beat you, so we will.”  
“They couldn’t beat us, because they weren’t strong enough,” Becca replies. “Let’s hope you present more of a challenge.”  
The confidence being displayed by Becca and Talia only angers the mysterious women in front of them. Knowing that another attack was imminent, Becca and Talia planned for this. Waiting for their new opponents to make the first move, they strip the costumes off, revealing the Liberty and Sharpshot uniforms Clint and Bobbi had made for them. Before going back to helping Hunter carry incapacitated students out of the gym, James hands the shield to his sister.  
“Kick their asses, ladies,” he says confidently to his sister and Becca.  
The tension builds as the four watch each other. No one moves, and no one speaks. Clint wants to help, but Bobbi stops him. She knows that this isn’t their fight, but they stand ready to provide assistance if it is needed. Finally, possibly out of sheer boredom one of the unknown women begins the attack. She charges at Talia, who deftly dodges the punch.  
“Sloppy punch, there girl. You start this fight and that’s the best you’ve got,” Talia questions.  
“Oh, I’ve got more than that. The first punch was just to size you up and see how quickly you can move.”  
“Then obviously Chase didn’t tell you enough about how good a fighter I really am. That’s kind of sad actually. I was hoping for a challenge here.”  
This only serves to anger the assailant more. Quickly she presses the attack, throwing rapid punches which are all blocked. She goes for a low sweep to the legs and Talia jumps, avoiding it.  
“Have you ever beaten an opponent before,” Talia asks incredulously.  
This comment finally does the trick. Now furious, the assailant begins to get overly cocky. Her punches start to fly wildly, and Talia is still avoiding each one. When she spots a weakness, she takes advantage catching her opponent’s arm, and uses the momentum to flip her opponent over and put her on the ground. While this was going on, the other girl began fighting Becca. With their battle there were no flippant comments, and not one attempt to throw the other of their game.   
“I see my partner has put your associate down,” Becca says calmly.   
“Then she’s obviously a better fighter than you. I’ve had you on the defensive this entire time.”  
“Yeah, it may look that way, but you still haven’t been able to land a punch.”  
“It’s only a matter of time, your punches are getting slower and poorly executed,” the other girl says to Becca.  
“Maybe that’s only what I want you to think.”  
As her opponent lowers her shoulder to try and take the wind out of her with a charge, Becca executes a perfectly timed flip, landing behind her. Off-balance, and not able to turn fast enough, she is hit with a kick to the back of her knee, taking her down. Now on the ground and clutching her knee, Becca finishes the fight with an uppercut to the chin where the girl’s tactical mask was not protecting her. Also still down, Talia’s opponent begins to stir.  
“All right, girl, you really want another fight,” Talia asks.   
“Not going to fight you again here, our boss only wanted to see what kind of threat you were. Trust me, when we come back for round two, the outcome will be different.”  
“Well you can tell your boss, we look forward to the next time,” Becca says coming to stand beside Talia.  
Still angry, the girl decided to throw one more punch; it misses again, with Talia grabbing her wrist. Twisting her arm around behind her, Talia goes for the mask and pulls it away from her opponent’s face. She’s not surprised when she sees who is looking back when turned to face her.  
“Chase, are you ever going to learn? You can’t beat me in a straight up one on one fight.”  
“You got lucky this time. I held back because Agent Barton and Agent Morse are watching. Next time there will be no holding back. Next time one of us goes down permanently.”   
Grabbing Destiny who has recovered and removed her own mask, they make a break for the door. Talia and Becca go to follow, but they are stopped by Clint.  
“Girls, don’t follow. You’ve already beaten them. They’re embarrassed and humiliated. There’s nowhere they can go we won’t find them.”  
“But Uncle Clint, we can’t just let them get away. What if they try to finish what they started with Frankie?”  
“They won’t get near her. Security is guarding her room, the only place they can possibly go is off campus or to Grant’s office, and if they go there, they won’t like who is waiting for them.”  
“Do you know something we don’t know, Dad,” Becca asks.  
“Yeah, before your Mom and I arrived here, we provided a distraction for Steve and Nat to break into Grant’s office. Right now they’re finding out what he’s up to.”  
“So we can call Coulson and have him shut down,” Bobbi says.   
While the four of them are talking, Hunter and James have returned from taking care of the other students. They come back in and see the results of the fight.  
“Looks like our girls handled themselves fairly well, didn’t they, Jimmy?”  
“I knew they could, Hunter. Did you really have doubts about my sister and Becca winning this fight?”  
“Not a chance,” Hunter replies. “If I did, I know Talia here would kick my ass later for it.”  
“Damn right I would,” she replies, laughing as she punches him in the shoulder.  
When the laughter subsides from the six of them, Clint makes a suggestion to all of them.  
“You four should go get some rest. It’s been a long night, and we’ll have more to deal with in the morning. I’m going to get security on high alert searching for Chase and Destiny. Then I’m calling Coulson. We’re going to follow through on kicking them out if I can get him here in the morning.”  
As the four of them leave for their rooms, Bobbi gets a call from Skye who had been monitoring the gym and the hallways.  
“Hey Bobbi, I thought I’d let you and Clint know that Chase and Destiny took off. Cameras caught them leaving campus.  
“Not surprising,” she replies. It’s late and there’s not much we can do about it tonight. We’ll get a security team sent out to search. They’re bound to come back. This fight isn’t over.”  
As she hangs up the phone, Clint looks over at her.  
“What happened,” he asks.  
“Chase and Destiny took off. We should send out a security team, not sure if they’ll be found, but we have to make an attempt.”  
“They’ll be found. They’re wearing modified SHIELD tactical gear. We can track it. All the new gear has a tracking device installed, courtesy of Tony. We’ll get them.”  
Parting ways for the moment, Bobbi goes to assemble a security team, and Clint heads off to his office to call Coulson. When he gets there Steve and Tasha are waiting for him.  
“Clint we need to talk,” Steve says.  
“It’s about Grant isn’t it, Steve,” he asks.  
“Yeah, he’s got something in the works called Project Anarchy. He’s recruiting young agents here to help him.”  
“And let me guess, Chase and Destiny were his first choice?”  
“How did you know that?”  
“Because they just attacked Becca and Talia again in the gym, after throwing smoke grenades which knocked out some of the other young agents. They mentioned something about a boss wanting to know what kind of threat our kids were.”  
Steve and Tasha both go into overprotective parent mode hearing this.  
“What happened,” Tasha asks. “Are they okay?”  
“They’re fine. Chase and Destiny couldn’t even mount a proper offensive strategy. They got their asses handed to them.”  
“Where are these two, now? I’ll break their legs if they come near either of our daughters again,” Steve says angrily.  
“They took off, but don’t worry. Bobbi has a security team after them. The new tactical gear provided by Tony has tracking devices built in. They won’t be able to run for long.”  
“How do you know this,” Steve is curious.  
“They were wearing the gear when they started the fight. They don’t know about the tracking devices though. These are test models, but have proven successful for extraction on their first test run.”  
“So tracking them won’t be a problem, provided they haven’t ditched the suits yet. The real question is where did Grant run off to?”  
“He was here when the night began, Steve. Odds are he’s headed back to his office.”  
“Then we go get him right, Clint?”  
“Not just yet. He doesn’t know we’re on to him. Confronting him now would be a mistake. Our best course of action is to let him have a false sense of security. He can’t go anywhere.”  
Steve wants to argue his point some more, but he knows Clint is right. As a soldier he always had to take the offensive and strike hard. Clint on the other hand is good at hanging back, watching from the shadows and striking with deadly accuracy when the time comes. Steve may not like it, but he does defer to Clint on the matter. As the conversation ends and Clint sets them up with some rooms, Bobbi is speaking with the Agent in charge of security.  
“I just got a report from the field team, Agent Morse. They have found one of the tactical uniforms Chase and Destiny were wearing.”  
“Where are they now,” Bobbi asks.  
“Still on the run, Ma’am, but the uniform had blood on it. One of the girls is definitely injured.”  
“Tell them to keep searching. Whatever they’re up to, we need to shut it down.”  
“Copy that, I’ll report back when we have something.”


	15. On The Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chase and Destiny are on the run after the fight.

Chase and Destiny are on the run. It’s only been two hours since the fight in the gym, but they keep going. After Becca kicked Destiny’s knee, the bone shifted and broke skin. She is having a hard time keeping up with Chase but she pushes on, having ditched her tactical costume when the blood began drying and hindering her movement.  
“Chase, I have to stop. We have to find somewhere we can go to set my broken bone.”  
“We can’t stop, D. We’re still deep in SHIELD territory. Any place we go will have agents and doctors wondering about your injury. We have to keep going.”  
“If we keep going I’m not going to make it. Chase I really need to stop. I need you to set my broken knee.”  
“Can’t, see those lights behind us? SHIELD security is after us. Just a few more miles, D. Grant’s safe house isn’t far away.”  
“How are they still tracking us? Every move we make they don’t let up.”  
As the team gets closer they can hear faint voices.  
“Agent Morse, we still have access to one of the tracking devices. At least one of the girls is still wearing the suit.   
After a brief pause the agent speaks again.  
“Copy that, we’re getting closer.”  
“Tracking devices? Oh shit. That’s how they’ve been keeping up. This tactical uniform I modified for my Chaos costume is what they’re following.”  
“Lose it, Chase. I got rid of mine because of the blood caking the leg from my injury.”   
Chase removes the uniform, and starts to run again, grabbing Destiny by the arm.  
“Come on D, without my uniform, they’ll lose us. You have to keep moving, push through the pain.”  
“I can’t; my knee won’t support me anymore.”  
Frustrated, Chase throws her arm around her friends’ shoulder, helping her take the weight from the broken knee. They hobble on through the night, still working their way to Grant’s safe house. The security team’s voices start to grow fainter until they can’t hear them anymore.  
“I think we’re safe now, I think they’ve stopped following us.”  
“Then I need to stop, Chase. You can’t carry me all that way either without some rest.”  
They finally stop in the woods to catch their breath, while the agents find the other uniform.  
“Agent Morse, we have found the other uniform. Still no sign of the girls. Do we keep searching?”  
Through the headset, Bobbi speaks back to them.  
“They can’t have gotten far with one of them injured. Three of you keep searching, the others return to the Academy.”  
“Copy that, Ma’am. Hernandez, Dalton, Simpson, you three keep going. The rest of us are returning to the Academy.”  
“Yes, Sir,” the three agents say.  
While the search continues, Clint is on the phone with Coulson, telling him about the events that occurred.  
“Look, Phil I know it’s late. I wouldn’t have called you if this wasn’t important. You really ought to get down here in the morning.”  
“What’s the problem, Clint,” Phil asks, still half asleep.  
“There was another attack tonight. At the SHIELD Heroes of the Past ball.”  
“WHAT,” Phil shouts, now fully awake, startling Clint on the other end of the line and Audrey, sleeping beside him.  
“Phil, what…,” Audrey asks.  
“Sorry, I’m on the phone with Agent Barton. There was another attack at the Academy. Go back to sleep, I’ll take this outside.”  
Phil steps out of their room, and she tries to go back to sleep but can’t being that she is worried about Phil and the young agents he is ultimately responsible for.  
“All right Clint, tell me what happened.”  
“The short version is that Chase and Destiny started a fight again. Now they’re on the run. You’d better get down here. There’s far too much to say on the phone, you need to be here for this.”  
“All right, I’ll be there in the morning. 0900, I want to know everything.”  
Ending the conversation, Phil hangs up and goes back to bed, Audrey is still awake.  
“What was all that Phil,” she asks.  
“Talia Rogers and Becca Barton were attacked at a SHIELD sponsored costume ball. Something is going on at the Academy. I have to go there in the morning.”  
“Rogers and Barton? You mean Steve and Natasha’s daughter, and Clint and Bobbi’s daughter?”  
“Yeah, this isn’t the first time they were attacked either. Suddenly I feel like HYDRA is starting all this up again.”  
“Well, whatever it is, I’m sure you’ll handle it.”  
Since getting back together Phil doesn’t keep secrets from Audrey anymore. A few years back they finally worked through all the problems that occurred from his death and resurrection. She remembers meeting Steve and Natasha, and she has a lot of respect for them, because of Phil’s own respect for them.


	16. The Next Morning

Phil arrived precisely at 0900. Not wasting any time he goes to Clint’s office to meet with him. Bobbi is in the early morning combat class so it’s a one on one meeting.  
“Just what the Hell is going on here Clint,” Phil asks.  
“I wish I had a good answer for you Phil. The only thing we know is that Chase and Destiny are up to something. They’ve spent the whole night on the run after the fight. Security is still after them.”  
“And they haven’t been caught yet? There’s more that you’re not telling me isn’t there.” Phil can tell Clint is holding something back.  
“I was getting to that. It’s about Grant. I have my suspicions that he’s helping them every step of the way.”  
“Grant, that’s not possible. He helped fight HYDRA off when we found out about the infiltration.”  
“Phil, how much did you know about him before appointing him as Academy Director? We’ve discovered that he has begun preparations for a Project Anarchy. He’s been recruiting young agents here to help him.”  
“I can’t believe Grant would be involved in something like this. His character just doesn’t show it.”  
“I’ve read the files, Phil. He has ties to HYDRA as well.”  
“Where did you get these files, does the we mean you and Bobbi?”  
“No, Bobbi was with me at the ball providing protection. Steve and Nat were the ones who found the file.”  
Phil is shocked at the revelations made here. He doesn’t know Grant that well, but Fury vouched for him as an agent. All of a sudden Coulson is reminded of John Garrett. While they try to figure out their next moves, with her class over, Bobbi comes in with Security Chief Anderson.  
“Hey Clint, we have a problem,” she says.  
“What is it Bobbi?”  
“We’ve lost track of Chase and Destiny. We know they both ditched the uniforms, and we haven’t had any reports from the team in the field. Grant has to be behind this. He’s helping them.”  
“Where is Grant now,” Phil asks.  
“Don’t know, he was at the ball, but he left before the gym was attacked with smoke grenades,” Bobbi replies.  
“So he’s on the run too. It can’t be a coincidence. Whatever Project Anarchy is, we’ve got to shut it down.”  
“That’s easier said than done Clint. We don’t know anything about this initiative of his other than he’s recruiting agents.”  
“Okay Phil, but we need to do something. We can’t just sit here and let him get away with it.”  
“We’re not going to let him get away with it. We’ve all worked too hard to rebuild SHIELD over these past years. We let him make his move and then we take him down.”  
At that moment, one of the Agents from the field team enters the office, severely injured.  
“Agent Morse, Agent Barton, help.”  
“Hernandez, what happened,” Anderson asks.  
“Attacked, betrayed. Lost the…,” he passes out before he can finish.  
Quickly, Clint starts issuing orders.  
“Pick him up! We need to get him to the med ward immediately. The only way we can find out what happened is to keep him alive. Let’s go!”  
Anderson, Coulson and Clint pick him up as gently as possible. Moving as fast as they can without injuring him further they head for the medical ward.


	17. Fugitives Caught

Earlier that morning:  
Stopping to rest was a bad idea, Chase and Destiny realized this when the security team caught up to them. They don’t usually feel fear, but knowing they were cornered and Destiny couldn’t fight back, they knew that they were in trouble. At least until one guard turned on the others, and shot them both.  
“You two all right,” he asks them.  
“What the hell do you care,” Chase asks angrily. “You want to make sure we’re okay before you kill us?”  
“I’m not here to kill you. I’m trying to help you.”  
“Yeah, right, we know that Barton and Morse sent you after us, because of the fight we started with Talia and Becca.”  
“Shut up Chase. If I’d wanted you dead, I could have done it already. Grant put me on the security team. I’ve been watching out for you two all this time.”  
“Wait a minute, what’s your name, how can we trust you,” Destiny asks.  
“Name is Simpson; you don’t have to trust me. But I can get you to Grant’s safe house. Destiny, can you walk?”  
“No, the kick from Becca broke a bone in my leg. It was hard enough just getting here.”  
“Then I’ll have to carry you. Grant is already at the safe house, waiting. We have to move quickly.”  
Simpson picks Destiny up and carries her the rest of the way. Chase follows behind still not sure if they should trust this SHIELD agent.  
A short time later, Hernandez regains consciousness after the gun shots from Simpson. He took a slug in the chest and one in the knee. He’s severely injured, but he knows he has to make it back to the Academy. Slowly he starts to walk, and with his headset broken he can’t contact anyone. When he arrives he can only get a few words out. After he does he passes out from the blood loss.  
“Get him to the O.R. We’ve got to get these bullets out if we’re going to save his life,” Dr. Ellis says. “We have to know what happened.”


	18. Safe House

Simpson carried Destiny the rest of the way. When they arrived at Grant’s safe house they realized it was much more than that. He had his own private medical facility built underground. His office was twice the size of the Academy’s gym, and it housed enough tech to make Tony Stark jealous. Chase realized it was more than just a place to hide out. It was a gigantic base of operations where Grant was planning Project Anarchy. She is impressed with all of this and believes that they have everything they need to take SHIELD down.  
“Nice place, Director,” she says. “You’ve got a giant fortress and it’s right under SHIELD’s nose.”  
“Quiet, Chase. I’ll deal with your failure momentarily,” Grant replies. “Agent Simpson, what is the status of Destiny?”  
“She has a broken leg, Sir. It is severe, but not life threatening if we get her medical attention quickly.”  
“Get her downstairs. My private doctor is waiting.”  
As Simpson goes to the elevator to take Destiny downstairs, Grant looks back at Chase with an unbridled fury in his eyes.  
“Sir, it wasn’t our fault, Talia and Becca were ready for us. We had no way of knowing that…,” Grant interrupts her.  
“Shut up, Chase. You’ve had every chance to complete this mission. Even with your identities hidden, you failed to defeat them. Now Destiny is injured. I’m through with giving you opportunities to get rid of these two. Now I’m going to have to take matters into my own hands.”  
“I can still help you, Sir. Please let me finish the mission.”  
“Why should I? What can you possibly do that you haven’t already tried?”  
“I know Talia’s weakness now. If I can take Dugan out of the picture, I can beat her. She’ll lose the will to fight if he’s hurt, or dead.”  
“You had better hope so, for your sake. Because if you fail this time, what you tried to do to Frankie, I will make happen to you.”


	19. Recovery

The operation on Hernandez took five hours but it was successful. The bullet in his chest missed all of his organs and lodged itself in a bone. The slug to the knee was a little more difficult to remove, and it shattered his kneecap. When he wakes up from the sedatives and on morphine for the pain, Chief Anderson is there to find out what happened.  
“Hernandez, what happened? We lost contact with the team early this morning. Then you show up injured.”  
“We were betrayed, Chief. We had caught up to the girls, but Simpson turned on us. He pulled his sidearm and shot Dalton in the head. We were left for dead, but I survived, barely anyway. I can only guess that he’s working for Grant.”  
As they are talking Dr. Ellis returns to check on his patient.  
“You’ll have to excuse me Chief Anderson. Agent Hernandez needs to rest.”  
“Of course, Doctor. Get better Jake, I need you healthy and back in the field.”  
As Chief Anderson left the medical ward, Frankie was also being released. She hadn’t heard back whether or not Talia and Becca had received the message. She knows that Captain Rogers is a man of his word though. She makes a decision to go see them even though it goes against her better judgment. She walks past her own room in the women’s dorm, straight to Talia’s room, hoping to find them, and she knocks on the door.  
“Hey, Talia, Becca are you in there?”  
The door opens and Talia didn’t expect Frankie to be standing there.  
“What do you want Frankie, I’m studying.”  
“Look, I just came to say I’m sorry for threatening you. Chase and Destiny played me, and have been as long as I’ve known them.”  
“It’s okay, Becks and I tried to tell you that in the med ward. My Dad came and told us you were sorry. It wasn’t your fault.”  
“I just had to tell you in person. Once I was strong enough to leave the ward.”  
“Apology accepted, listen if there’s nothing else, I need to get back to cleaning my shield.”  
“I thought you were…, never mind it’s none of my business.”  
Frankie leaves and Talia closes the door to her room, getting back to strategizing with Becca, Hunter and James.  
“What did Frankie want, Talia?” Hunter asks, having heard snippets of the conversation.  
“She just wanted to apologize. Seemed to be honest and heartfelt.”  
“I still don’t trust her. For all we know it was a ploy to throw you off your game.”  
“Come on Dugan, even Dad said she meant her apology when he told us about it.” James tells them all.  
“So where is Captain Rogers now? I would have thought he’d stick around with the threat level against you two.”  
“Mom said he had to go back to D.C. He went to get a couple things that they needed.” Talia replies.  
“Any idea what those things are?” Becca asks.  
“No, but Hunter might get his wish to see Captain America and The Black Widow in action again.”  
“I hope so; I’ve seen the video footage at the Smithsonian. I bet it doesn’t compare to seeing him action in real life.” Hunter gets starry eyed at the thought.  
“Fan boys, Hunter you’re almost as bad as Coulson.” James says with a laugh.


	20. Strategy

Monday rolled around and Tasha stayed at the Academy while Steve had gone back to D.C. The President had requested an update on the status of SHIELD from his visit. During the briefing Jacobs was not thrilled with the information he was receiving. With SHIELD possibly infiltrated again, he could already tell what Steve was thinking, he just needed to hear him say it.  
“Come on Steve. I know you’re worried about what’s going on at the SHIELD academy. I could hear it in your voice, and see it in your body language. Just ask me what you want to ask.”  
“Sir, I need to be there. I know I have obligations to this office as Secretary of Defense. My wife has obligations as Deputy Director of SHIELD. She stayed behind while I came back. It is possible that SHIELD has been infiltrated again. If there is a threat rising, it is imperative that I be there to deal with it head on.”  
“Steve, I know your kids are there. I know you want to help protect them. But do you really think resigning is the answer?”  
“Resigning, Sir? I’m not resigning. I just need a short leave of absence. However, I am not requesting this because my children attend the Academy. They are more than capable of defending and protecting themselves. The reason I need to be there is because Tasha and I already have experience with this situation. Director Coulson has personally made this request of me.”  
“Then I grant your leave of absence. The reason I chose you for this job is because of every battle you’ve been in. I am sure your knowledge in regards to this crisis is necessary. Good luck, Captain America.”  
“Thank you, Sir.” Steve salutes the President and leaves first for his own office, and then to his home to retrieve the rest of what he and Tasha will need.  
While he does this back at the safe house Grant is preparing his own strategy with his team.   
“Doctor, how is Destiny? Is she going to be ready for the battle that lies ahead?”  
“No, Director Grant, we have had to surgically repair her knee. It will be at least a month before she can walk unassisted, and another before she can resume her duties.”  
“This is unfortunate. It means that the only asset I have is Strucker. And she has already failed me on more than one occasion. Frankly I have my doubts about her belief that taking out Dugan will do anything other than anger the Rogers girl.”  
While Grant is still speaking with the Doctor an old ally of his arrives at the safe house. As she is escorted down the medical level, she remains quiet until she can announce her presence at the opportune moment.  
“I hope you’re not planning a war without me Sidewinder.” The woman says as she stands at the bottom of the stairs.  
As Grant turns around he sees someone he never thought he’d see again.  
“Storm-front, I thought you were in Europe, and you had given up this life.”  
“You know better than anyone that it’s hard for an assassin to walk away. I’ve kept up with the goings on here in the States. I always knew Pierce was an idiot.”  
“So what brings you back now?”  
“Really Grant, you know I hate SHIELD just as much as you do. They took my father from me.”  
Grant is well acquainted with her hatred for SHIELD. Her father was a top level agent for the agency and his friend. He was killed in a raid that Fury led into a terrorist base.   
“So where are you with bringing SHIELD down? She asks.  
“One of my recruits was injured in a fight with the daughter of Hawkeye and Mockingbird. She won’t be able to walk for a couple of months.”  
“So the Archer and his birdie had a kid. Honestly, I’m shocked that Barton would settle down.”  
“He’s not the only one we’re dealing with. There are two other Avengers with them. And my grand plan was to have my recruits take care of their children.”  
“Children? So Earth’s Mightiest have all settled down and had kids. Doesn’t matter, I’m in.”  
“Good, Storm-front, because I can use you. I’ll need you to work with Chase Strucker. Maybe if you help her she won’t fail at eliminating Rogers and Barton.”  
“Wait a minute, Rogers? Don’t tell me Captain Boy Scout had a kid too.”  
“Yeah, him and Romanoff. I don’t know what the world’s former greatest assassin sees in the red, white and blue pansy.”  
“It doesn’t matter. If she’s with him, it only means she allowed herself to be weakened. So what’s the plan?”  
Grant introduces Chase to her new ally, and they go about planning how to not only break into the Academy, but how to take out four Avengers and their children. Chase still thinks taking Hunter down will compromise Talia, so Grant finally reluctantly agrees to the course of action. Back at the Academy strategic planning is beginning to sound more like a war council.  
“Chase and Destiny have been gone for some time. I can’t believe they’d just attack us and then run away.” Talia says.  
“Maybe we beat them bad enough that they won’t try anything again.” Becca says, trying to sound confident.  
“Come on, Becks, you know better than that.” James says. “Those two may not be the brightest crayons in the box, but even a stupid adversary can be deadly.”  
“I was just trying to keep the situation light, Jimmy. We’re headed for a war, not a fight.”  
Sitting in the back of the room, listening, Tasha has still been hacking Grant’s files. She’s trying to discover why Chase, Destiny and by association Grant, hate them so much. She wouldn’t be surprised when she finally broke through.  
“Did you guys ever wonder why Chase and Destiny hate you so much?” Tasha asks from the back.  
“Hunter had a theory, Mom. He said it was because of our lineage.” Talia replies.  
“Well he wasn’t wrong. It’s not just your lineage, it’s theirs.”  
“What do you mean, Aunt Tasha?”  
“I mean, Steve and I were curious as to why their last names were omitted from all the files about them. Now I know why. Chase is a Strucker, and Destiny is a Cross. That explains why Chase always went after you Talia, and Destiny attacked you Becca.”  
“So they picked up their grudges against our kids, from their relatives grudges against Clint and I?” Steve comments from the doorway having returned from his trip to D.C.  
“Dad, you’re back! So what is it you went to get?” Talia asks.  
“I had to go talk to the President. He’s kindly granted me a short leave of absence due to the nature of the threat. I went home to get these.”  
He steps back into the hallway, bringing in two bags. He hands one to Tasha, and unzips the other. In his bag is his shield and uniform. Tasha opens up her own duffel and inside is her Black Widow uniform, complete with her Glocks and Widow’s Bite bracelets. The first thought in Talia’s mind upon seeing this is:   
“I have to call Hunter. He’s going to want to see this.”  
“One step at a time kiddo.” Steve says. “Chase and Destiny are yours and Becca’s opponents. Grant and anyone else are the responsibility of your Mom and I. This is a war for SHIELD.”  
Talia hears a seriousness in her Dad’s voice she never heard before. They’ve all heard the stories about World War II. The battles he, her Mom, Clint and Bobbi have been in along with the other Avengers. Now the previous fights with Chase seem like nothing more than games. She, James, and Becca all knew what kind of legacy they would have to live up too. Steeling herself for what is to come, she’s going to make damn sure they all walk away from this. Fear doesn’t even register, and it’s never held her back. She knows this fight will be brutal, because Chase and Destiny aren’t done with them yet. Talia intends to finish this even it means she and Becca do leave the Academy. They don’t have to prove anything. She’s the daughter of Captain America and The Black Widow, and one more time she’s going to make them proud.


	21. Chase's anger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little in fighting between Chase and Destiny. Steve, Tasha, Clint and Bobbi spar with Becca, James, Hunter and Talia.

Chase had heard everything Grant had said before introducing her to Storm-front. She didn’t believe she was a failure, and she resented being partnered up with someone she doesn’t know. The worst part of it all was that Grant’s words didn’t come out angry; his tone of voice spoke of disappointment. This would drive her to make a decision that she hopes would make him remember why he recruited her, but it would end in bitterness and danger for them all.  
“Hey, D. How are you feeling,” Chase asks after entering Grant’s private medical facility.  
“How do you think I’m feeling, Chase? My leg is in a cast and I won’t be able to walk for two months.”  
“So you’re blaming me for this? For your injury?”  
“Yes, you made the decision to attack Talia and Becca at the costume ball. I told you we should have waited. We weren’t ready and they were.”  
“Have you forgotten everything we’ve been through together? All the times we helped each other? You and I are like sisters; don’t turn your back on me now.” Chase says this, getting angry at her friend’s accusations.  
Destiny gets just as angry, and fires back at her friend.  
“This isn’t about us! This is about you! You got cocky, and wanted to do this all on your own. You still want to prove that you’re better than your grandfather Baron Strucker by defeating a Rogers.”  
“And what about you?! You want to be better than Crossfire. How many times has he gotten beat by Barton?!”   
“How dare you bring Crossfire into this!” Destiny yells back. “At least he isn’t a feeble old man who couldn’t even beat Captain America with a full army at his disposal!”  
“FEEBLE!” Chase yells out. “At least he stood up to Captain America! That’s more than Crossfire has ever done!”  
As the fight intensifies, Grant has come down to his medical center to try and put a stop to it, after the doctor called him.  
“STOP THIS!” Grant yells at both of his recruits. “This is exactly what SHIELD and The Avengers want! Us at each other’s throats. If we don’t put aside this stupid bickering, we can’t win the battle!”  
“Destiny started it, Director Grant. I just….”  
“Shut up Chase! I don’t care who started what. Get your heads in the game, or Storm-front and I will do this on our own.”  
“Chase is already on her own after she got me injured,” Destiny mutters.  
“What was that?” Grant asks, angrily.  
“Nothing, Sir.” Destiny replies. “I need to get some more rest while my surgically repaired knee and leg heal.”  
“Be sure that you do.” Grant replies, now a little more calm. “Chase, if you’re going to be down here, I better not hear you start another fight.”  
“I didn’t start it, Sir. I just came down to talk.”  
“Whatever, get back upstairs and figure out how to get your head on right. Do I make myself clear?”  
“Yes, sir,” Chase replies with little conviction. She goes back upstairs to make her own plan to sneak back onto campus and take Talia down, by hitting Hunter first.  
“I don’t know what I was thinking, when I recruited her.” Grant says to himself as Storm-front joins him downstairs.  
“You were thinking she could help. She is a Strucker, and she has years of family history she wants to live up too. Come on Sidewinder; don’t let this get to you. We all need to be focused for this fight.”  
“She better not screw all this up, is all I’m saying.”  
That night, Chase leaves the safe house under cover of darkness and dressed all in black. She didn’t believe Destiny when she heard her say “this is all about you,” she still thinks that everything she has done has only been about their friendship. She wants to prove it, and thinks taking out both Talia and Becca will prove it. Her pride would be the beginning of her downfall.  
Meanwhile back at the Academy, Becca, James, Hunter and Talia are in a training session with Bobbi, Clint, Steve and Tasha.   
“Come on Hunter, you want to be prepared for this fight, you have to do better.” Steve says.  
“I haven’t even shown you my best stuff yet, Cap. You sure that you want me to come at you full force,” Hunter asks in reply.  
“Do it, I think I can handle it, son.”  
Hunter goes back to a fighting stance, and Steve gestures for him to begin. As the sparring session gets under way, Hunter throws punches that Steve easily blocks. When Steve starts throwing his own punches, Hunter not only blocks, but evades like a well-trained boxer. The fight intensifies, even though they’re not trying to hurt each other. Finally Hunter lands a punch that puts Steve down on his back.  
“Cap, I’m sorry,” Hunter apologizes. “Are you all right?” He asks as he offers his idol a hand up. Instead of taking his hand, Steve moves in for a low leg sweep that takes Hunter off his feet, and then stands up on his own.  
“That was a good hit. Not many can take me down like that. Learn that from Dum Dum?” Steve asks, now offering his own hand out to the kid.  
“Yeah, but all the Dugan men learn how to box. I started at five years old.”  
While Steve and Hunter continue talking, they take the time to watch Tasha and Talia spar. As Mother and Daughter continue, Clint and James, as well as Bobbi and Becca have stopped their own training sessions to watch. The movements are fluid and graceful so it begins to seem more like a well-choreographed dance routine than an actual sparring session. If not for Talia being two inches taller than her mother, one would think that this was a split screen recording of the same person fighting herself. When they finally end the training, they both notice the others staring. Neither Tasha nor Talia landed a serious punch. Every attempt was perfectly executed and every block more so. Steve and Hunter finally break the silence that settled in while watching with loud clapping. In unison they both say:  
“That’s my girl.”  
Talia blushes at the comment, and Tasha and Steve both glare at Hunter. With the look they both gave him, he almost wet himself in total embarrassment.   
“Sorry, I didn’t mean…, what I meant was… I…” he is so flustered he can’t even complete a coherent sentence.  
Steve and Tasha can’t even hold a straight face at the young man’s embarrassment. They both break into laughter, and Hunter turns beet red again. When their laughter subsides, Tasha comes to stand beside Steve as he gives Hunter a friendly clap on the shoulder.  
“Relax, kid. Our daughter seems to like you. And we both know you wouldn’t do anything to hurt her, right?”  
Still thoroughly embarrassed, Hunter can only manage a quiet: “Yes, Sir.”  
Clint only barely heard Hunter’s answer, but he manages to make a small joke.  
“You know he couldn’t Steve. Talia would kick his ass into next Sunday.”  
Hunter finally laughs at this, and Talia comes over and takes him by the arm.   
“Come on you guys,” she says, “It’s late and we should all go get some rest.”  
The four young friends all depart for their own rooms, while the older Avengers clean up the gym. All is quiet until Tasha asks:  
“Does Hunter remind you of anyone, Steve?”  
“Yeah, me back in 1943,” he replies.  
They all burst out in laughter again, and leave for their own rooms as well.


	22. Caught in the act

Chase made her way back to campus under cover of darkness. She knew that getting back into the main building wouldn’t be easy. When she arrived at the front entrance there was a lone security guard watching for threats. Moving as silently as possible, she attacked the guard from behind and covered his mouth with a chloroform soaked rag. After he passed out she used his security card and hand print to enter. As she made her way through the building towards the men’s dorm, she brought out the small laser pointer she brought with her from Grant’s safe house, and used it to blind the security cameras. After she found Dugan’s room, she knew she had to be quick so security wouldn’t catch her. While she picked the lock to enter, the night security guards were watching the cameras when they went blank. Quickly one of them made a call to Chief Anderson.  
“Chief, we have a problem.”  
“It’s the middle of the night, Henderson, what is it?” Anderson asks, half asleep.  
“Sir, the security cameras in the men’s dorm have just gone off line. They were working fine, and then they just went blank all of a sudden.”  
Anderson is now fully alert and starts issuing orders.  
“Mobilize a team, get there as quick as you can. This can only mean someone has infiltrated the grounds. I’ll meet the team there in five minutes.”  
“On it, Sir,” Henderson calls out to the other guards on duty over his headset. “All guards on duty report to the men’s dorm immediately. Campus has been infiltrated. Initiate lockdown. The Chief wants no one in, no one out. Franklin, you stay here, call in if the cameras come back on-line.”  
“Yes, Sir,” Franklin replies.  
Several calls of copy that come back over the headset, and Henderson goes to catch up with the team. Meanwhile Chase has finally picked the lock, and entered Hunter’s room. What she didn’t expect was for him to still be awake, nor did she expect to find who was there with him.  
“Who the hell are you? What are you doing breaking into my boyfriend’s room,” Talia asks.  
Caught off guard, Chase tries to sound confident, but she wasn’t prepared for the possibility of Talia being there.  
“You shouldn’t be here Rogers. This would have been a lot easier for me if Dugan had been asleep, so I could take him to my boss.”  
“You’ll take him over my dead body. Let me guess, you’re another one of Chase’s flunkies aren’t you?”  
“I don’t need flunkies to do my dirty work, Rogers. I’m perfectly capable of taking you down by myself.” She says removing the mask that is covering her face.  
“So it is you, Chase. Clearly you don’t remember the previous fights we’ve had.”  
“Oh I remember, those were just tests of your abilities. I warned you, this time it’s for real.”  
“Then you better have learned something from your so called tests. I’ve had enough of you, and you know I can put you down.”  
Hunter is a little embarrassed at the argument the girls are having in front of him, and even though this is the first time Talia has used the term boyfriend in reference to him, he feels the need to remind them both he is in the room.  
“Hey, you know I’m here. And I can defend myself, if the need arises.”  
“Stay out of it, Dugan. I’m going to beat your pretty little girlfriend down once and for all.” Chase says back angrily.  
He steps back, knowing that this has been brewing since before he and Talia started dating. Of course he worries a little bit for her, but he knows she can defend herself. The fight begins and quickly moves from the room into the hallway. After the previous sparring session with her Mother, Talia is prepared for anything Chase can throw at her. As punches and kicks continue back and forth from the opponents, the fight grows more intense and moves down the hallway to wider spaces. Chase is hitting Talia with every punch she knows. She jabs, Talia blocks, and throws a right cross back. Her fist connects with Chase’s face, leaving a dark red mark. Briefly stunned, Chase regains her footing, and attempts a left hook, missing wildly. As she tires from the exertion, Talia hasn’t lost a step and keeps pressing her advantage pushing Chase further back. As the fight continued, the security team arrived and could only follow as they tried to keep the other students from getting hurt or involved in the fight. Finally the girls reached the gym where they had more open space. Here they both let loose, and their fight became more brutal. As they were no longer confined by the cramped space of the hallways, the battle became more of a wrestling match as they both tried to out power and out maneuver each other. Twice Chase was able to get Talia down on her back, but she was lacking in the strength to keep her down. The first time she was pinned she was able to roll with the momentum and flip Chase off her. The second pin attempt resulted in Talia catching hold of Chase’s fists, and then flipping her off, after which she landed on her face. As she gets back up, Talia has taken a defensive stance, waiting for the next attack to come.  
“You ready to give up yet, Chase?” Talia asks, still barely winded.  
“I will never give up. I’ll stop when you go down, and I’ve avenged my grandfather for all the defeats he suffered at the hands of your father.” Chase spits back in reply.  
“Petty, playing at revenge that doesn’t even have anything to do with you. Also cowardly, blaming me for your grandfather’s failures.” Talia says back.  
These comments only serve to anger Chase more. Like their previous fight in the gym she lets her anger get the better of her and she makes sloppy attacks. As her punches miss wildly, and she attempts to fight with the little Kung Fu that she has learned, Talia hits back with her own knowledge of Jujitsu. Now off-balance and outmatched, Chase is defeated after what seems like an hour long fight. She’s down and completely winded after the battle. Security easily takes Chase into custody as Clint, Bobbi, Steve and Nat have arrived with James, Becca, and Hunter in tow. Hunter is the first to get to Talia.  
“You all right? Since security kept the hallways blocked to keep any of us from getting through I stopped to get James, Becca, your parents and Agents Barton and Morse. I let them know what was going on.” He speaks to her with a lot of concern in his voice.  
“I’m fine Hunter. You don’t need to worry about me. I handled it.” Talia replies with exhaustion and anger.  
Hunter is shocked at the tone of her voice, but doesn’t let his face show it. He’s not really sure if she’s angry at him, or the fight she just endured. As Talia leaves, she tells her parents that she’s fine, no injuries. Hunter just follows behind as the rest of the students make a path through the hallway for her. As they watch the couple leave, Steve and Tasha can’t find the words to say how proud they are, or about the worry they had when Hunter came and told them about the fight. They instead try to get back to planning strategy with Clint and Bobbi, knowing that the bigger fight is still to come.  
“So you guys aren’t going to go after her, or say anything?” Clint asks finally.  
“No, Clint. She handled the fight the way she knew how too. You know just as well as we do that Talia can take care of herself.” Tasha says in reply.  
“Yeah, but come on Nat, what if the fight hadn’t gone her way. The last fight Chase started here, I wanted to jump in and help. Bobbi stopped me.”  
Steve speaks up now, and his words are not what Clint expected to hear from the soldier.  
“It’s not our fight, Clint. Like you, I want to be the overprotective father sometimes, but I have to trust Talia to be able take care of herself. We can’t fight our daughter’s battles all the time for them.”  
“You’re right Steve. All of those years teaching them to defend themselves, but sometimes I still remember the first time I held Becca after she was born, wanting to protect her from everything never goes away.”  
Becca has often seen a softer side of her father, but not like this. She speaks reminding them all that she is still in the room.  
“Hey, I’m standing right here, Dad. I can protect myself too.”  
“I know, Becca. One day when you have kids, you’ll understand.”  
Bobbi shares a smile with Clint after his statement, but quickly gets back to the main issue at hand.  
“Listen, this isn’t something we can just ignore. Nor can we take it lightly. Chase got onto campus, and even though she was alone, whatever Grant is planning is going to happen soon.”  
“I have no doubts about that Bobbi.” Tasha replies. “I don’t think he knew about this. She did come alone; odds are he has no clue.”  
“Could he really be that incompetent?” Steve asks.  
“No, if he’s kept his cover this long, he’s far more devious than anyone knew.” Clint says in reply.  
As the four older Avengers begin planning strategy again, Talia has returned to her own room with Hunter right behind her. As she paces, he sits down waiting for her anger to dissipate. He would make his first mistake in their now three month relationship with what he thinks is a simple question.  
“Talia, I know you’re angry. Is it something I did?”  
“Something you did?! Are you really that dense? This isn’t just about you! It’s about the both of us. I can handle Chase coming after me, but now she’s after you as well.”  
“And you know I can protect myself. She doesn’t have the same abilities you do. She can’t seriously hurt me.” Hunter says all this calmly.  
“You really don’t get it.” Talia replies, no less calm. “She may not be able to seriously hurt you. That’s not the point, when she was after Becks and I it was nothing to worry about. Now she’s trying to hit the people I care about. We’ve only been together three months, but I can’t lose you.”  
“You’re not going to lose me. I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”  
Talia looks into his eyes and sees nothing but honesty. As her anger subsides she begins to talk about her youth, and why she is afraid of losing him.  
“This is hard me for me Hunter. My life could never be described as normal. James and I were home schooled for most of our lives, at least until high school.”  
“A lot of kids are home schooled now. What’s not normal about that?” Hunter asks in mild confusion.  
“Most kids aren’t the children of super heroes. Jarvis was a great teacher and all, but James and I both missed out on a lot of experiences. Believe me; Mom and Dad were reluctant to let us go to a public high school. They eventually did enroll us in one, and it was my first real experience of being normal. Now I’ve got you, and I’m just not sure how all of this works. I know I chose to live the life of an Agent, but sometimes I also just want to live a normal life. Is that so wrong?”  
“It’s not wrong at all. You want something everyone else seems to take for granted. That’s what being a legacy can do. If it helps, I’ve never had a normal life either. Don’t forget your parents managed a somewhat normal life. When you and your Mom were sparring, Cap told me that the greatest joys in his life came the day they got married, and the day you were born. To the general public, your parents are Captain America and the Black Widow. But Natasha and Steve fell in love, not Cap and the Widow. That’s normal, if that’s what you want, then go for it.  
Talia is surprised at everything Hunter just told her. All of it was honest and raw truth. Most of all it helped her forget her fear of losing him.


	23. Interrogation

Of all the improvements made to the Academy, two things missing are a proper interrogation room and a holding cell. With Chase in custody security had her in lockdown in Anderson’s office. All attempts to question her have been unsuccessful.  
“All right Chase, you came back, despite common sense telling you it would be a bad idea.” Chief Anderson says; after getting nothing but silence from her. “Why did you come back?”  
“Why does it matter? I have my reasons.” Chase shoots back.  
“Obviously you had your reasons. I don’t think they were only to attack Talia Rogers.”  
“That is the only reason I came back, Anderson. If you think otherwise then you’re a fool.”  
“You do realize we all know your lineage now. The Strucker family is well known to SHIELD. Your grandfather has on many occasions tried to take down this agency. We also are well aware of his ties to HYDRA.  
“My Grandfather is dead. He has nothing to do with this.”  
“Of course not, former Academy Director Grant is calling the shots. If you tell us what you know, we may be able to get Director Coulson to be lenient with your punishment.”  
“I don’t know anything about Grant’s plans. He doesn’t even know I came here. I acted alone. Now, are we done here?”  
Chase still refuses to answer any questions. Knowing that he won’t get anywhere with this interrogation, Anderson leaves to report back to acting Academy Director Barton and SHIELD Deputy Director Rogers. As he leaves, he appoints Henderson to stand watch.  
“Alex, keep my office secure. No one goes in, and Chase doesn’t leave. I have to speak with Clint and Natasha, but I’m not done with her yet.”  
“Yes Sir, should anyone attempt further questioning of the prisoner?’  
“No, we won’t get anywhere. She’s either playing stupid, or she really doesn’t know what Grant has planned. I’m leaning towards the former.”  
Anderson walks away towards Clint’s office to meet with him and Natasha, while back at the safe house Grant, Simpson and Storm-front are all searching for Chase.  
“Where could that little shit have gone? I knew she’d cause some sort of trouble.” Grant says angrily after the search comes up empty.  
“Sir, perhaps she went back to the Academy? You did give her permission to attempt to take out Dugan. Maybe she wanted to make a preemptive strike?” Simpson says.  
“If she did, then we’re all in trouble. They’ll find a way to make her crack. She’s weak.”  
“Come on Grant, she can’t be that stupid. She knows the risks of returning to the academy alone. Maybe she just went outside to cool her head,” Storm-front replies, but with little real belief in that theory.  
“Do you really believe that? She’s arrogant, and impetuous. She started two fights with Rogers and Barton. Both of which she lost. If she did go back to the academy, then she’s on her own.”  
“So we’re just going to leave her there Grant? If she does crack, SHIELD will be led right to us. Maybe we should hit them before they can hit us.”  
“Not a good idea, Storm-front. We’re outnumbered and out-gunned. If they’re planning what I think, it will only be Captain America, The Black Widow, their daughter and her little sidekick that come to fight us.”  
“So what’s the plan then? If they come, we’re still at a disadvantage, there are only the three of us, unless you’re expecting your medical staff to fight as well.”  
“With all due respect, Sir, Storm-front is right. We attack first and we have the element of surprise, if we wait for them to find your safe house, we don’t stand a chance,” Simpson says. “They’ll come down on us with all of the weapons SHIELD has at their disposal. We really can’t afford to let Chase crack under the pressure.”  
While the three of them are still planning strategy, Destiny hobbles in with her own ideas.  
“Director, I’ve been listening to your conversation. We need to try and break Chase out. If we really want to take SHIELD down, we need her.”  
“How exactly do you plan to do that Destiny? You’ve still got a leg in a cast. You won’t be much use in a fight.”  
“I don’t intend to fight. But if I can get back to the Academy, maybe I can convince them that after all the failed fights with Talia and Becca that I’m willing to turn myself in, because it was all your idea, not Chase’s.”  
“A Trojan horse ploy could work. That’s actually a solid plan, and it’s rooted in the truth. The attacks were my idea.”  
“And you three follow me. When they let me in, I can get Chase out. Then we can do what you set out to, take SHIELD down.”  
“All right, we’ll have to move quickly. Simpson, there’s a SHIELD car in the underground parking facility. Take it and get her as close as you can. Don’t be seen. Odds are they think you’re dead like the others, or working with me.”  
“I’ll get her there Sir, and I won’t be seen.”  
As he helps Destiny towards the parking facility, Grant begins talking with Storm-front again.  
“I think we take the fight to them on our terms. How would you feel about taking the Black Widow out of the picture permanently?”  
Ignoring the question, she brings up his previous plan.  
“What about Project Anarchy? Wasn’t that your grand plan in all of this?”  
“A ruse, nothing more than a ploy to get the Avengers focused on something else.”  
“You know they’re probably hacking all of your files. What happens then?  
“I’m counting on them to hack my files. When they do, there is one that will disable all security functions at the academy.”  
While Grant explains the file, Destiny has arrived back at the Academy. Franklin calls in over the radio to his boss.  
“Hey Chief, we’ve got a problem at the front entrance.”  
“I’m meeting with Clint, Natasha and Steve. What’s the issue Franklin?”  
“It’s Destiny Sir. She’s returned to the Academy. She says she wants to turn herself in.”


	24. Trojan Horse

Anderson went and took custody of Destiny personally. The first place he took her was to see Dr. Ellis. This was to make sure that the cast on her leg was just that. For three hours after the check-up she was kept in the med center. Anderson questioned her, Clint questioned her. Like Chase she couldn’t reveal any answers about Grant’s project. Not one of them revealed that Chase was there, also in custody. With both of them in lockdown, Talia and Becca decide to visit Destiny, hoping they can get some answers.  
“Can we speak to Destiny?” Talia asks after arriving at the doors to the med center.  
“I’m sorry, Miss Rogers, but the Chief insists no one goes in there.” Franklin says, as he is standing guard.  
“Even if it’s possible for us to get the answers we need from her,” Becca asks.  
“I’m sorry, but I’ve been given strict orders. Miss Barton, Miss Rogers, no one is allowed in until she is ready to talk.”  
“All right, thanks anyway.”   
Becca and Talia leave for the dorm and their own rooms, planning another way in. As they do, Anderson is in with Chase trying one more time for answers.  
“I already told you before Anderson. I don’t know anything about Grant’s Project Anarchy. How many times do we have to go through this?”  
“I wasn’t going to ask about Grant. The fact that you brought it up tells me you do know something. Aside from that, Destiny showed up. Said she wants to turn herself in. I may not be able to get answers from you, but I can get them from her.”  
“Yeah, right, D knows even less than I do. She can’t help you either.”  
“She already told us Grant ordered the attacks on Rogers and Barton. Said none of it was your idea.”  
“That’s what she gave you, it’s hardly a secret. We went along with it because of our lineage. But you already knew that.”   
“You know you’d save yourself a lot of this if you just confess. You’re not doing yourself any favors. Director Coulson is on his way back to the Academy, and he’s bringing Councilman Fury along. You can end this right now, and Nick Fury won’t be let loose on you.”  
“Coulson and Fury don’t scare me. I have nothing more to say.”  
“If that’s the way you want to play it. Fine, we gave you every opportunity to end this.”  
Anderson leaves his office, and for only the second time during all this, Chase is afraid. By now Grant knows she came back, and she’s gotten Destiny in danger again. Contrary to what she said, she is afraid of Nick Fury. She knows his history. He’s seen several wars, has fought side by side with Captain America, and survived all of HYDRA’s attempts to assassinate him after they had infiltrated SHIELD. She doesn’t want her first meeting with the man to be an interrogation. She knows it will be. As she contemplates her fate, Grant has finalized his plans for taking the Academy and then SHIELD. He knows there are other students with ties to HYDRA. Most of them were taken in by SHIELD because they had family who were agents. Either these family members were already HYDRA or they were killed in the line of duty. Like Storm-front’s father, many of the kids went through the exact same situation when both agencies fell. He thinks that he can do what HYDRA failed to do. All he needs is events to play out the way he planned.   
“We’re wasting time here, Grant. Destiny has to have gotten back in by now. The longer we delay, the more likely it is that SHIELD will figure out why she really came back.”  
“We’re not wasting time Storm-front. Everything is proceeding as it should. We just need to wait for the signal from Simpson that the Academy’s security and power systems are all out of commission. Then we can make our way back. It will be complete anarchy as they all try to figure out how their most secure systems went off-line.”  
As he continues relating the rest of his plan, Talia and Becca have broken into the med center to speak with Destiny.  
“Why’d you come back here Destiny? Are you as desperate as Chase to try and attack us again?” Becca asks her.  
“I won’t be attacking anyone for a while. You made sure of that when you broke my leg. How did you two get in here anyway?”  
“We came through the air ducts. You don’t grow up with parents who are spies without learning a few things.”  
“Breaking in though? Doesn’t that go against everything you were taught, Rogers?”  
“Get back to the subject at hand. What is it Grant has planned?” Talia gets back on track.  
“I’ll tell you what I told Anderson and Hawkeye. I don’t have a clue. I just came back to turn myself in. All I know is Grant wants all of you out of the picture. I got tired of doing his dirty work.”  
“Really? From what my Dad says all Crossfire ever did was other’s dirty work. What makes you so different?” Becca asks, trying to get Destiny riled up.  
“I know what you’re trying to do. You think bringing Crossfire up will make me angry enough to spill something. Forget it. Just get out of here. I don’t have anything to say to either of you.”  
“Come on Becks, we can figure this out without either of them talking. We can let them both stew in their own guilt.”  
Becca and Talia ascend back through the air ducts to leave the med center. As they drop back into Talia’s room. Clint is waiting for them, leaning against the wall.  
“So did you two have fun sneaking into the med center through the air ducts?”  
Talia gets flustered because he knew what they were doing, and tries to explain.  
“Uncle Clint, we just, we wanted too…” she pauses as Clint interrupts her.  
“Relax Talia, I had a feeling one of you would try it. Besides, Becca may look more like her mother, but she takes more after me. I’ve used air ducts to sneak through many a building in my time. Did you get anything out of Destiny?”  
“Only the same things you did. Nothing about Grant or whatever project Anarchy is,” Becca replies.  
“Nat and I planned for that. She’s still been hacking Grant’s files. I think we may have finally found what we’re looking for.”  
“What are we looking for, Dad?”  
“Names, plans, exactly how far this goes back to HYDRA. When we get that information, we can end this for good.”


	25. Coulson and Fury

Nick Fury wasn’t happy. He has only been on the council for a short while now. Even though it was his idea to reform the council after all these years, he never really wanted to be a part of it. When Phil asked him to not only join, but lead, he couldn’t say no. Now that he’s heard the reports on what’s happened at the Academy, he knows he’s about to go back to war.   
“What the hell did you get me into Coulson? When I agreed to reform the council I didn’t think I’d have to deal with HYDRA again.”  
“We’re not sure that it is HYDRA, Nick. It could be just rogue agents using what HYDRA did to throw us off. It could be worse than that.”  
“Again I ask; what the hell did you get me into?”  
“Sir, how much do you know about Academy Director Grant?”  
“Only as much as you do, Phil. Highly decorated, trusted agent. He was there when we found out about HYDRA’s plans to take down SHIELD. Even helped fight them.”  
“Exactly, cut off one head and two more shall take its place. He’s been here since all of that. Steve and Natasha found files that link him to HYDRA.”  
“After all this time Pierce is coming back to haunt me. Whatever Grant has planned we need to shut it down.”  
Nick and Phil continue talking, as their helicopter is touching down at the Academy. Skye is in with Tasha going through the files.  
“Hey Natasha, we’ve been hacking these files for a week now. I think I’ve got what we’re looking for.”  
“I knew I did a good thing teaching you Skye. What did you find?” Tasha asks without looking up from her own laptop.  
“I’ve been going through the first file you found. There’s a lot of code to go through, this is going to take a while. So far, I’ve got names of several students with ties to HYDRA, personally recruited by Grant.”  
“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. Keep working, I know we’re getting closer to figuring this out.”  
As they both get back to work, Steve enters with news.  
“Tasha, Nick’s here. He’s requesting for us to meet him at the helipad.”  
“Skye, I should go with Steve, text me if you find anything else.”  
“Will do, don’t worry, I got this.”  
As they leave her to work, the first question Steve asks is a big one.  
“So how far do you think this goes back to HYDRA?”  
“If Nick is here, this is far worse than we expected. He had reservations about joining the council. But after last time, I knew he wouldn’t be able to stay out of it for long.”  
“Why is it that every time we get settled in our lives together HYDRA has to come back into the picture?”  
“Come on Steve, if they didn’t; our lives would get boring and mundane. You don’t really want that to happen do you?”  
Steve smiles back at Tasha and laughs before replying.  
“There’s the woman I fell in love with. She’s still quick with a joke even in dire circumstances.”  
“Dire circumstances have always been when I’m at my best, sweetheart.”  
“And after all this time I still wouldn’t have it any other way.”  
As Steve and Tasha make their way to the helipad Becca and Talia are planning for their own fight that is still to come.  
“You know Talia; I think Destiny coming back here is for reasons more than just to turn herself in. And I know I didn’t kick her hard enough to break her leg.”  
“Odds are she broke her leg when they were on the run. So we know the fight is coming, the question is when. It needs to be the last.” Talia replies, with a sound of disappointment evident in her voice.  
“It will be, but you don’t sound as confident as you normally do. What’s going on?”  
“I’ve been thinking, as long as we’re here, the rest of the Academy is a target. Maybe we should leave. That way we’re not the reason any other students are in danger.”  
“Come on Talia, I know this goes back to our first weeks here, I thought we got past all that. Is this about Hunter?”  
“Becks, it’s not just about Hunter. He is a reason for me to stay. But I don’t want his life to be in danger because of me. He and I do have something normal with our relationship, but…”  
“No buts. The Academy has helped us develop our skills to their utmost potential. Everything we learned from our parents has been strengthened by what we’ve learned here. And getting back on point, Hunter is good for you. He makes you happy.”  
“That’s true, he does make me happy. Even with what he and I have, there’s always the risk that he could be in danger because of me. I couldn’t bear it if something happened to him because of me.”  
“I thought with the talk you two had you weren’t afraid of losing him anymore. It’s a risk that he’s willing to accept. So what’s the real problem here?”  
“I feel like I’m being selfish. I want to have it all, the family, and to be able to live up to the legacy I was born from.”  
“You really are like Uncle Steve. Captain America is a tough legacy to live up too. I think you’re more than capable of it. I can’t help but admit that you’re right though. Leaving the academy may be the best thing for us to do. If it’s what you want to do, then I’m with you, Talia.”  
“Well you certainly took a roundabout way of getting to the point, Becks. Enough of the mushy talk, we’ve got a fight ahead of us, and we need to be ready.”


	26. Breach

It didn’t take long for Steve and Tasha to reach the helipad. Nick greeted them both with a nod and started walking towards the elevator, with Coulson behind him. As the elevator took them to lower levels of the academy, Fury spoke.  
“Romanoff, Rogers, report.”  
“What do you want us to say Nick?” Tasha asks first in reply. “We know that Grant has left campus, he has ties to HYDRA, and he is planning something called Project Anarchy. Agent Skye is going through his files still trying to find out what this is.”  
“After a month, that’s all that we know? You two were the ones who uncovered HYDRA infiltration the last time. I would hope you’re not losing your edge.”  
Steve took note of the anger and disappointment in Fury’s voice and speaks up in defense of everything they’ve been doing.  
“Look Nick, Grant had access to every system here. He’s also obviously well versed in SHIELD tech. He had been able to hide every step, and erase every keystroke he made. It took Tasha two hours just to hack the file that contained the last names of his first two recruits.”  
“The two recruits that started a fight with Talia and Becca, Phil told me about the fight on the way here. I understand that one of them is in custody. And the other is in lockdown in the medical center. Agent Barton informed Phil of this.”  
“Yeah, Chase Strucker. She was the main antagonist in the fights, and by order of Grant, whom you vouched for.”  
Ignoring Steve’s accusatory tone, Nick knows he has only one choice in this matter.  
“I want to question her. No one here has been able to get answers. I will.”  
Phil, Steve and Tasha are well acquainted with Nick’s interrogation techniques. But only Tasha calls him on it as a mistake.  
“Not a good idea, Nick. If she didn’t give us anything, there’s not a chance in hell you’ll get anything either. She’s a Strucker, and they have always been notoriously difficult to crack.”  
“Still, I think I should…” As they exit the elevator Nick doesn’t finish what he was about to say as all the lights go out. Having been there a while, Tasha was given a headset to contact security.  
“Anderson, what’s going on,” she asks. “The power just went out in the main hallway from the elevator.”  
“We’ve got a breach. Security systems are off line. We’re trying to trace the source of the breach now. Stand by.”  
As the emergency lights come on, Skye contacts Tasha on her cell.  
“Natasha, we’ve got a problem. Grant’s file had a virus in the code. It shut down everything. I can’t log back in.”  
“Keep trying, we need to restore main power. We could get attacked if we don’t.”  
“On it. I’ll keep you posted.” Skye replies back.  
“All right, we need to move. Our priority now is keeping the academy and the students safe. Nick, Phil, follow our lead.” Steve says, taking charge.  
Meanwhile, from a safe distance outside the campus, Simpson has been monitoring the communications between security and the Avengers. Hearing what he needed he reports back to Grant.  
“Sir, security systems are down, only emergency back-up power is operational. If you want to attack, the time is now.”  
“Not yet,” Grant replies back. “From the tracking device I gave Destiny she is still shown in the med center. She needs to get to Chase and free her. They’ve got help in there, and back-up is on the way here. Sit tight, that’s an order.”  
“Yes, sir, I’m standing by.” Simpson wasn’t accustomed to waiting. Ever since he joined SHIELD security, he always wanted to be in the middle of the action. But he knows to follow orders.


	27. Escape

When the power went out Chase knew that Grant’s plan was kicking into high gear. She also knew that Henderson was standing guard outside the office. With little time before main power would be restored she put her plan into action. As she opens the door he turns around to stop her.  
“Stop right there Chase. Chief Anderson appointed me to keep watch on you. Get back in there.”  
“No. I’m leaving and the only way to stop me is to shoot me.”  
Alex doesn’t want to shoot her. He knows what she’s done, but he grew up idolizing Captain America. He thinks Cap wouldn’t shoot or ever harm a woman. His hesitation is all Chase needed. She attacks mercilessly, and leaves him unconscious.  
“Should have shot me, hesitation because I’m a girl is a weakness.” She says walking towards the medical center. Moving through the hallways she finds no resistance, she didn’t expect that, but it does give her a slight advantage. At the door is Franklin, still standing guard.  
“You should step aside Agent. I’m here to get Destiny.”  
“You’re not going in there Chase. She is in lockdown. Which if I’m not mistaken, you should be as well.”  
“Henderson got in my way and I left him unconscious. You want a repeat performance?”  
Franklin lowers his gun and presses his hand to the scanner, opening the door.  
“Alex is an idiot. It’s what he gets for idolizing Captain America. He could never make the hard decisions.”  
Chase is now confused, she didn’t expect another SHIELD security guard to provide her assistance.   
“What the hell are you doing? You’re just going to let me walk in there and take Destiny back to Grant?”  
“That’s exactly what I’m doing. I volunteered for this assignment. Anderson has no idea how much I owe Grant. He pulled me out of the Triskelion just before the last helicarrier destroyed it.”  
“So what, your allegiance is to HYDRA also?”  
“No, I’m loyal to Grant. That’s all you need to know. Now, get Destiny out of here. I’ll cover your escape.”  
“How do you plan to do that? If they catch us, they’ll know you helped us.”  
“Let me worry about the details. You just get out of here before I regret my decision.”   
Chase doesn’t need to be told twice. She enters the medical ward to rescue her friend, while Dr. Ellis is distracted trying to get power back to keep other patients alive.  
“D, come on we’re getting out of here.”  
“Chase? I knew you came back. I thought I was coming back to rescue you.”  
“We don’t have time for small talk. We have to move. It won’t be long before all power and security is back on-line.”  
Chase throws her arm around Destiny’s shoulder and supports her on the way out. When she sees Franklin, Destiny thinks they’re going right back into lockdown. She is surprised when he tells them to go. While Franklin pretends to be unconscious, the girls are forced to stop. Frankie is standing in their way.  
“Get out our way Frankie. Don’t make me hurt you again.” Chase says threateningly.  
“You couldn’t possibly hurt me worse than you already have. And I’m not moving.”  
Destiny speaks up next, trying to reason with their former friend.  
“Please Frankie, step aside. I don’t want to see you hurt like last time.”  
“No. I’m not letting you leave. I found out you were here. Now I’m going to stop you.”  
“How did you find out,” Chase asks incredulously.   
“I have my ways. And some friends of mine are on the way here to help.”  
“Let me guess, Becca and Talia are those friends.” Destiny replies.  
“You were wrong about them, and I was wrong about you.”  
Chase helps Destiny lean against the wall, before making her way to attack Frankie again. Before the fight begins the door behind her opens and Simpson shocks her with his Taser.  
“Come on you two, we don’t have a lot of time. Let’s move.”  
Chase and Simpson support Destiny as they walk back to the car. Quickly they leave to head back to Grant’s safe house as Becca and Talia arrive at the main entrance. Frankie is slowly recovering from the shock.  
“Frankie, what happened? Are you all right,” Becca asks.  
“Chase and Destiny got away. I tried to stop them, but someone shot me with a taser.”  
“Did you see who?” Talia asks her.  
“No, the shock was to my spine. Someone must have been waiting for them.”  
“Come on, we need to get you to Dr. Ellis. I want to make sure you’re okay.”  
Becca and Talia help her up and support Frankie for the walk to the med center.


	28. Stalemate

As Simpson drove Chase and Destiny back to Grant’s safe house, Becca and Talia arrived back at the medical center with Frankie. As they arrived at the door, they saw Franklin down, seemingly unconscious.   
“Hey, Franklin,” Talia calls out. “You okay?”  
As he pretends to slowly recover he speaks like he is disoriented.  
“What, what happened? Was I knocked out?”  
“Yeah, did Chase attack you as well?”  
“I…, she must have. I remember telling her that she wasn’t getting in to the med center for Destiny, and she told me she left Alex unconscious. Please tell me they didn’t get away.”  
“Yeah, they did,” Becca replies. Frankie tried to stop them, but she got hit with a taser in her spine.”  
“Then they’re on their way back to Grant’s safe house. It’s the only logical conclusion.”  
Becca and Talia’s eyes go wide with shock. So far no one knew about where Grant was hiding out. When he mentioned the safe house, Franklin revealed that he knew more than he should. Talia is the first one to realize what this means.  
“How do you know Grant has a safe house? No one knows where he’s been hiding out.” Talia says.  
“I just assumed…most SHIELD agents have one. We are in danger a lot of the time…”  
“Yeah, but Grant is Director of the Academy. That would offer him some protection close to the campus, and most likely a place on the grounds. Even my Uncle Clint and Aunt Bobbi have faculty housing.”  
“Well, maybe he wanted to keep a place away from the campus.”  
Becca and Frankie have now caught on to where Talia is going with this. The realization hits them, and Becca speaks next.  
“You’re in on it! You’re one of Grant’s HYDRA stooges aren’t you?”  
“You helped them escape!” Frankie shouts furiously. “Do you have any loyalty to SHIELD? How could you?!”  
Franklin knows he’s been caught now. He doesn’t deny anything they’ve said. Instead he reveals his where his true loyalty is.  
“Grant saved my life. I owe him everything. HYDRA and SHIELD, they’re both pathetic. Neither of them could exist without the other as a counterbalance.”  
“Hydra is the antithesis of everything SHIELD stands for. My Dad proved that as long as there is still someone left to fight for what’s right, people like you can never win.”  
“That is a foolish sentiment, Miss Rogers. Your father is a relic of a by-gone era. Things in this world have never been as black and white as he sees them. Maybe he’ll finally realize it when he has to bury his only daughter.”  
“Are you planning to kill me, Agent Franklin? You can try, but I have no qualms about kicking the crap out of you.”  
As Becca takes the task of supporting Frankie on her own, Talia takes up a defensive stance, waiting for Franklin to attack her. He wouldn’t get the chance, as another SHIELD security guard has come to help the girls.  
“Don’t even think about it Franklin. I’m not going to let you hurt the Captain’s daughter.” Henderson says as he walks up.  
“What are you going to do, Alex? You were beat up by Chase.”  
“Only because I refused to fight her, Talia was right. Guys like you can never win as long as guys like me are there to stand against you. Don’t forget I trained you. I taught you everything you know.”  
The fight begins and Henderson is out pacing and out maneuvering Franklin at every turn. Franklin manages to get a few good hits in, surprising his former trainer. But he still doesn’t have the skill he needs to beat Alex. As he begins to get winded, Franklin knows he can’t win. As he goes for a sweep to the legs, Henderson easily avoids the attempt with a backflip, and lands behind his opponent. With Franklin now locked in a choke hold the fight is nearly over, the teacher addresses his student one more time.  
“I taught you everything you know, Franklin. I didn’t teach you everything I know.”  
Franklin finally passes out, and Alex lets him fall to the floor. After zip tying his opponent’s wrists together, the Agent speaks to the girls.   
“Are you three all right? He didn’t get the chance to hurt any of you before I got here?”  
“No, we’re all okay.” Talia speaks up. “But how are you? Did Chase really beat you up?”  
“She attacked me, yes. The only reason she was able to knock me out is because like your Dad, Miss Rogers, I won’t hit a woman. It’s not right.”  
“So what are we going to do with Franklin here? Are we going to just leave him unconscious on the floor?” Becca asks their new ally.  
“I’m taking him to Anderson. Maybe we’ll finally get the answers we need. You three should return to your rooms. It could be the safest place for you right now.”  
“We’ll go, but Dr. Ellis really should see Frankie. She was tased by someone who then helped Chase and Destiny escape. We just want to make sure she’s okay,” Talia says in reply.  
Henderson picks Franklin up off the floor as Talia and Becca help Frankie inside the med center.   
“So, what can I do for you three?” Dr. Ellis asks as the girls greet him.  
“Frankie needs medical attention, Dr. Ellis. She was shot with a taser to her spine.” Becca speaks first in reply, but Frankie tries to protest.  
“Really you guys, I’m fine. I’m sure the Doc has more important patients to help than me.”  
“No buts, Frankie. We just want to make sure you’re okay. Especially if you’re going to help us fight this battle,” Talia says.  
Frankie ceases all further arguments, realizing that the daughters of four Avengers want her help. Now she understands what real friendship feels like. As Becca and Talia leave, she lets Dr. Ellis examine her injury.  
As Henderson dragged the unconscious Franklin down the hallway, he put a call through to Chief Anderson on his radio.  
“Chief, I thought you should know I’ve discovered more infiltration in SHIELD.”  
“Who is the traitor, Alex? What do we know about this person?”  
“I think it would be best if you meet me in your office. If she is able, Deputy Director Rogers should accompany you.”  
“She is in a meeting with Secretary Rogers, Director Coulson and Councilman Fury. But I will see if they are able to join us, meet you there in ten.”  
“10-4, Sir, I’ll explain everything when you arrive.”


	29. Reinforcements

Simpson was able to get Chase and Destiny extracted from the Academy. As he made the drive back to Grant’s safe house, he was still wondering about just who was coming to assist. Grant has never been the most talkative Agent, so he only hopes that whoever they are will be enough to finish the mission. After he arrives with the girls, Grant requests an update.  
“Simpson, report. What is the status of the Academy?”  
“Main power is still off-line. Whatever virus was in your files has them all stymied. Currently Agent Skye is still attempting to regain access.”  
“That will take some time. What of Chase and Destiny? Were you able to secure them?”  
“Yes, Sir. They are currently in their assigned rooms, awaiting instruction.”  
“Good, the final preparations have been made. Our final assets are en route now. ETA is 5 hours.”  
“Sir, if I may, who are these assets? How can they help us?”  
“All I can tell you at this point is that they are comrades from HYDRA. Some of them were involved in helping Erik Selvig acquire the materials to create the machine that opened the portal above New York. Even then, we were waiting in the shadows.”  
“So this all still about HYDRA taking down SHIELD.”  
“No, this about more than SHIELD. This about taking down everything. Our benefactor wishes to complete his mission. One he started many years ago.”  
“Everyone thinks this was all your idea. So who is this mystery benefactor, Director Grant?”  
“Even I don’t know his true identity. His communications only come through a secure channel and are recorded beforehand.”  
“I also have to ask, why did you keep this from us?   
“Simpson, are you suggesting that I deliberately kept this from you?”  
“We have a problem, Sir. You appointed me to the security team so I could assess every unknown variable. I can’t do that without the proper intelligence.”  
“This information was classified as need to know. And you didn’t need to know, until now. Our benefactor will reveal himself when he feels the time is right.”  
“So we wait.”  
Simpson is angry that he was kept in the dark about this. He also finds himself slightly annoyed at the prospect of more waiting. Before departing he has one more question for Grant.  
“Sir, what if SHIELD and the Avengers find your safe house before your fellow agents and the benefactor arrive? What then?”  
Grant can’t answer that question. His belief is resolute that everything will fall into place before an attack comes to them. Meanwhile, back at the Academy, Chief Anderson, Tasha, Coulson and Fury have just arrived to meet with Henderson. Tasha and Nick are not the least bit shocked at discovering the identity of the spy in their midst.  
“Somehow Franklin, you were the person I least expected to be one of Grant’s stooges.” Anderson says upon hearing the revelation.  
“Then you’re a fool, Chief. I owe Grant more than you can possibly imagine. It won’t be long before his plan comes to fruition and the Academy is taken.”  
“And what is this plan you speak of? We couldn’t get anything from Chase or Destiny. If you’re his right hand, you must know something.”  
“I never said I was his right hand, Anderson. I’m just fulfilling a debt I owe. I will tell you that you don’t need to wait for long. Soon enough, all will be revealed.”  
Coulson has had enough of the cryptic words and mind games. He is not normally one to let his anger get the better of him, but this time he lets loose.  
“You have once chance to tell us what you know, Franklin. You can reveal what your boss has planned, or you can spend the rest of your days locked up in the Fridge. That is of course, after I let Agent May beat the information out of you, while you’re handcuffed to this chair I might add.”  
Franklin believes Coulson is bluffing, and calls him on it.  
“I do believe that’s an empty threat Coulson. I know just as well as you do that Agent May is retired from this life. You would be hard pressed to get her to come back just for this.”  
“Of course you’re right. Agent May never needed to beat someone to get a confession. It was never her style. Fortunately there is someone who does have that style. Natasha, if you please?”  
Phil steps out of the way, and Tasha steps forward. While she knows that this is another elaborate bluff from Coulson, she does play up the fact that she could do it.  
“So you called Phil’s bluff about Agent May. We actually expected that. You do know who I am?”  
“I’m not afraid of The Black Widow. I know what you’re capable of. I also know that you see beating a handcuffed man as beneath you. Quite frankly, your marriage to Captain Rogers has compromised you. You’re not the feared assassin you used to be.”  
“You’re right about one thing. Beating up a coward of your caliber is beneath me. If you know so much about me, you know that I once kicked Agent Sitwell off a roof. I can have Anderson turn you loose, and we’ll see if you’re not afraid. This time my friend The Falcon won’t be there to catch you, like he did Sitwell.”  
Franklin’s eyes widen in fear, and sweat starts to drip down his face. Everything he’s heard about The Black Widow is true. She is a master of manipulation and he knows she wouldn’t hesitate to follow through on what she told him. He knows she just called his bluff.  
“I can’t tell you all of what Grant has planned. He’s kept everyone in the dark. Chase, Destiny, all of us. All we know is that it involves taking SHIELD down. The how, the why, he didn’t share that with any of us.”  
Fury has been listening intently to everything said. He hasn’t spoken one word since entering Anderson’s office. Until right now.  
“He’s useless. Coulson I hope the defenses of the Fridge have seen major upgrades since Garret and Ward broke in. We don’t need a repeat performance of that incident.”  
“Don’t worry about that, Sir. No one is going to be able to get past the defenses of the new Fridge. Especially since we had the main entrance buried fifteen feet underground. Of course the whole facility is underground. I hope you’re not claustrophobic Agent Franklin.”  
Knowing that they need to gather more Senior Agents for the coming battle, Nick has Phil escort Franklin out of Anderson’s office to the helipad, for transport to the Fridge. Tasha leaves the office to check in with Steve and Clint, who are in training sessions with the students, preparing them for a fight. Anderson stays to work on rebooting the security systems.  
“All right guys. The fight ahead of us will be a tough one. So Agent Barton and I are going to train you as best we can. At this point we’re not sure when the attack will come, nor do we know exactly who we’ll be facing.” Steve says in his best commanding but sympathetic voice.  
“Captain Rogers is correct. We know none of you expected this when you came to the Academy. If there was any other way to avoid this, we would be exploring those options,” Clint adds in.  
After a few moments of silence, a hand is raised in the back, and a voice speaks up accompanying it.  
“What about the Avengers? If this crisis is as big as you say, shouldn’t one of you call them in? You two are a part of that team.”  
Steve replies to the young student, steadfast, but with a slight hint of regret.  
“Unfortunately son, the rest of the Avengers are away on their own respective missions. Dr. Banner is in Europe with Dr. Elizabeth Ross, Iron Man and War Machine are in D.C. And Thor is dealing with his responsibilities as King of Asgard. This is our fight, our responsibility.”  
Clint speaks next, trying to help these young agents have the confidence they need for the fight ahead.  
“This is your school. You train here, you learn here. Many of you didn’t have homes when you came, and the others, you’re the children of SHIELD Agents. This is your home now; it’s up to you to fight to protect it. All right, pair up, The Captain and I are going to assess your combat skills.”  
Tasha had been listening as her husband and best friend spoke to these students. As she watched the expressions on the trainees faces go from worry to determination, she knew that the Academy was going to survive and SHIELD would be better for it.  
“Well, Captain, Hawkeye, would you like some help with your assessment?”  
Steve and Clint both turn around to find Tasha standing there with a smile on her face, before she spoke again.  
“That was very inspirational, fellas. Shall we begin?”  
The students move back into their pairs and begin demonstrating their fighting skills for the three Avengers present.


	30. Arrival

Grant’s allies arrived five hours later as he said they would. All of them had ties to HYDRA, either currently or in the past. Simpson was surprised at the level of firepower they brought with them. Many of them had brought weapons the Red Skull had used in 1945 to try and defeat the Allied Forces. He felt it better not to ask how they had recovered the weapons.  
“So these are your allies, Director? I thought you said this wasn’t just about SHIELD and HYDRA.”  
“This is just the beginning, Simpson. With the tesseract powered weapons the Red Skull created, we can decimate SHIELD. You didn’t know that I was one of two agents in charge of developing the phase two prototypes, did you?”  
“That was before my time, Sir. But that is how you were able to recover these HYDRA weapons, I take it?”  
“I didn’t recover them, I stole them. From right under Fury’s nose. He never knew it happened because he was too busy directing the Avenger Initiative to fight Loki.”  
“A brilliant plan, Sir. I can’t help but notice that Storm-Front has been M.I.A for a few days. Isn’t she basically your right hand in all of this?”  
“The coming battle brings back a lot of painful memories for her. When she was fifteen her father was killed in a raid led by Nick Fury. He was a top level agent of SHIELD. I have no doubts that she will be ready for what lies ahead. In the meantime, you should get some rest. We make our way to the Academy tonight.”  
As they part ways, neither of them had any idea Storm-Front was in communication with Nick Fury.  
“Councilman Fury, I have successfully infiltrated Grant’s safe house from the Intel I received.”  
“Excellent work Agent. The information about the location the real Storm-front provided was correct?”  
“Yes Sir, Grant’s plans have been finalized. Several HYDRA agents arrived just a few hours ago. From the Intel I have been able to gather, the attack will begin tonight.”  
“Have you been able to keep your cover? They haven’t figured out your true identity?”  
“No Sir, for all intents and purposes Grant really does believe I’m Storm-Front.”  
“Good, we need to make sure it stays that way, at least until the attack begins.”  
As they break contact, “Storm-front” returns down-stairs to meet with Grant and the other HYDRA agents. At the Academy, Becca, James, Hunter and Talia are in what they hope will be the last sparring session before the final battle occurs.  
As Becca and Talia spar, they talk, and a serious question is brought up.  
“So have you told Hunter yet, Talia?”  
“Told him what Becca?”  
“That you’re leaving after all of this is over.”  
“No, there just hasn’t seemed to be the right time.”  
“You need to tell him. He needs to know. I mean what do you think is going to happen the next morning after this is all over and he goes to your room and finds you gone?”  
“I’ll tell him when the time is right. But what about you, have you told James that you’re leaving with me?”  
“What’s James got to do with this? He and I are just friends, kind of like brother and sister.”  
“Come on Becks, that’s a lame response. I’ve seen the way you look at my brother ever since I caught him making out with you in Uncle Tony’s movie theater six years ago.”  
Becca pauses for a moment and she turns bright red in embarrassment.  
“You saw that? Talia I can assure you that nothing more than that happened. I was thirteen, and…” Talia’s laughter interrupts Becca’s train of thought.  
“You think I’m angry? No, Becks, I want my brother to be happy. And honestly I think you two would be good for each other. Of course he vehemently denies it, but I think he’s interested in you.”  
“Maybe he is, and maybe he isn’t. We’ll just have to figure this out after it’s all over with.”  
Briefly, Hunter and James pause in their own sparring session, and see Becca and Talia talking more than training.  
“So what do you think they’re talking about, Jimmy?”  
“I hope it’s just about the coming war, Hunter. But, knowing my sister and Becca, it’s probably about us, or their next girls’ night out, without us.”  
Hunter knows James is probably correct, but he still wants to know one thing.  
“So tell me something Jimmy, why haven’t you acted on your feelings for Becca?”  
“Feelings for Becca? You’re crazy Dugan. Becca sees me as a brother. She’s never been interested in me.”  
“Uh… I call B.S. on that. If that’s the truth, then what’s it like making out with someone who sees you that way?”  
“Talia didn’t….”  
“Yeah she did. She told me how she caught you two making out in Stark’s movie theater at Avengers Tower when you were fifteen and Becca was thirteen.”  
“Man, she’s never going to let that go. Yeah we were fifteen and thirteen, but Becks just wanted her first kiss to be with someone she really trusted.”  
“You embarrassed? You really should figure out what you want from her, Jimmy. You may not get a chance to later. Think about it.”  
“Whatever, Dugan. Let’s just get back to the sparring session, all right.”  
“Have it your way. I won’t bring it up again.”   
No more words are spoken as Hunter and James start training again.


	31. Final Battle

As night fell, Grant and his allies gathered their weapons for the attack on the Academy. Underneath his bravado, Grant was worried that his benefactor had still not revealed himself. From every recording delivered to him he believed the only way this plan could succeed was the arrival of this man. Deciding they could not wait any longer, he gave the order to depart.  
“It’s time to move out. No more waiting, we don’t have time for false promises or recordings. From this point, the fight is ours.”  
As the soldiers leave, “Storm-front” speaks to her ally.  
“Did you really put all of your faith in this one man, Sidewinder? After all these years you can’t honestly tell me you believed that someone you’ve never met would actually be some sort of saving grace?”  
“I don’t know. Your father and I once believed SHIELD was a force for good. That working with them helped keep the evil at bay. When he died, was when I realized that there is no true force for good.”  
“And that’s when HYDRA approached you. You told me all this. Come on, it’s time to make SHIELD face reality. This time there will be no survivors.”  
“Just remember kid, I need you to make sure Chase stays focused. This is her last chance to prove she can carry the legacy of the name Strucker.”  
Grant and “Storm-front” leave the confines of the safe house and join the other Agents in the various vehicles for the return to the Academy. The drive is short and all of them are on edge. However the battle goes, this will be the end of the long feud between the two organizations. One fighting to save their world, the other to rule it.  
With the majority of the security cameras back on-line, the new Agents of SHIELD stand ready to protect their home. At the front of the line stand Captain America, The Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Mockingbird. They are flanked in full uniform by Talia, Becca, James, Hunter in his new SHIELD tactical gear, and Frankie, who is now going by the call sign Firelight. As they wait for the inevitable battle to come, the motion sensors detect the enemy forces drawing ever closer. Agent Hernandez is watching the monitors and delivers the news.  
“Chief, Director Rogers, enemy forces are inbound. ETA fifteen minutes.”  
The silence following the announcement is stifling. It seems as if every young agent waits with bated breath. When the silence finally became unbearable, an urgent communication came through only for Nick Fury, as a helicopter lands on the roof.  
“Sir, this is Coulson. I saw the enemy forces approaching as we flew in. Whatever Grant proposes to do here, we seem to be outnumbered.”  
“What about the Senior Agents you went back for, Coulson? How many were you able to bring?”  
“Only a few. Agent May insisted on joining me. I was also able to get Agent Triplett. What we lack in manpower we may be able to replace with firepower. I’ve brought the Destroyer gun, and Trip has brought his Grandfather’s weapons saved from all the Howling Commandos missions.”  
“Then it will have to do. Get down here Coulson, open war is about to start. Captain, call it.”  
“All right listen up. You kids are not children anymore. You are now full Agents of SHIELD. You’re the oldest and the most experienced. Your job is to stay inside the campus. Protect the younger students. Dugan, and Williams you’re in charge, if any enemy forces get through the front lines, you take them down. Coulson, Fury you’re their partners. If anything goes wrong in the exterior battle, the fight will fall to you. Hawkeye, Sharpshot, I need the two of you on the roof. You’re to provide cover fire for our ground forces. Don’t let up, keep them dodging arrows.”  
“Captain, it will be our genuine pleasure.” Clint says, remembering the first time Steve showed him respect and trust.  
“Widow, Liberty, Recluse, and Mockingbird, you’re with me. I have no doubts Grant will have his forces ignore us and attempt entry into the Academy. Odds are that Grant, Chase, and anyone else will try to keep us distracted. This will be the toughest battle of all. We all know what we have to do. Let’s move out.”  
Steve leads his team out the main entrance. All the training, all the knowledge he and Tasha have imparted to their children doesn’t keep him from being concerned. This is the battle he hoped would never come. It was always easier for Steve to risk his life for the greater good, and Tasha has always been right there with him. Now they are going to be fighting alongside their own flesh and blood. Looking at Tasha, he knows she is just as concerned as he is. As the team takes a defensive stand, Talia takes some time to assess the opponents making their way forward, and has only one thought:  
“This is it; it’s time to end this fight.”  
Grant and his own team have left their vehicles and reached the front of the Academy. He has brought a large force with him, and it seems as if Steve’s team is indeed outnumbered. The newest Agents have decided that the Avengers won’t be fighting alone. One by one they exit the building and stand ready to defend. Steve addresses them all as Dugan walks up and stands next to Talia.  
“You should have stayed inside. We wanted to protect you.”  
Hunter speaks next, in reply to his hero.  
“Come on Cap, Agent Barton was right. This is our home; we’re going to fight for it, side by side with you.”  
“Don’t worry Cap, Coulson, Anderson, Henderson, May and I have the interior taken care of.” Fury says over the radio to Steve.  
There is now no more talking. Grant moves to engage Steve in battle, while the HYDRA agents also move into position engaging the other Avengers and SHIELD Agents. Only Chase would speak, hoping to finally throw Talia off her game.  
“Well, Rogers, this is the last time. After all the fights we’ve had, I think I can beat you. You ready for the final round?”  
“You thought you could beat me every other time, Strucker. You always ran, with your tail between your legs. If you think this time is going to be any different, you’re mistaken.”  
“Enough talk then. Put the shield down. Bet you can’t beat me without it.”  
Talia goes to set her shield down, and Chase throws the first punch. It’s wild and Talia easily blocks.   
“Come on Strucker, you tried that punch once before, it didn’t work then either.”  
As both girls go silent, their real fight begins. Both land hits, and they go back and forth, blocking and returning punches. Neither of them have the edge in a fist fight, so Chase moves back to the martial arts. Setting herself into a Kung Fu stance she gestures for Talia to attack. Talia moves in and blocks the first kick, and with a twist of the leg, she puts Chase down on her back.  
“You tried that once before as well, Chase. Clearly you didn’t learn anything from the last fights you started with me.”  
“Actually I learned a lot from those fights.” Chase twists her body around and kicks again with her free leg, striking Talia in the abdomen. The momentary loss of breath causes Talia to lose her grip and Chase is back up on her feet.   
“Didn’t expect that, did you, Rogers?”  
“That flick to the stomach? I barely felt that. You really can’t do any better can you?”  
“I know what you’re doing Rogers. Trying to rile me up just like in the last fight. Won’t work this time.”  
“Already has. Give it up Chase. You can’t beat me. I would have thought your Grandfather taught you to fight better than this.”  
As predicted Chase becomes angry at the mention of her Grandfather. She lets loose with a level of aggression that she didn’t previously display, and Talia finally gets the fight she wanted to have. As the girls’ fight intensifies, Steve and Tasha are locked in combat with Grant and “Storm-front”.  
“Come on Captain, give me a real fight. I’ve seen the footage of your battles with The Red Skull and Baron Zemo. Show me what you’ve got,” Grant says.  
“The Skull and Zemo were skilled opponents, Grant. You’re an administrator. You can’t possibly think you can beat me,” Steve replies, undeterred.  
“Maybe I’ll surprise you.”  
Grant comes full force at Steve, throwing every punch at the soldier that he knows. Cap blocks and hits back. As Grant stumbles from punch after punch connecting, he finally realizes he is severely out matched. He goes for a different tactic and tries kickboxing. It would be his last mistake. Steve dodges every kick and is able to move faster than the next one can be executed, finally getting the perfect opening, he catches Grant’s overextended leg, and with a twist and throw, puts him on the ground.   
“It’s over Grant.” Steve says, not even winded from the exertion. “Call off the attack.”  
“We’re not done yet, I believe your wife and daughter are still fighting my team.”  
With one more punch to the face, Cap knocks Grant out and watches for either Tasha or Talia to need help. Tasha won’t need it, because her opponent has never attempted to take the offensive. She finally tries to get the Black Widow to stop fighting.  
“Natasha, stop,” Storm-front calls out.  
“Not going to happen, you’re here with Grant! You two are not taking the SHIELD Academy down.”  
“Natasha, can’t you see I’m only defending myself from your attack? I’m not who you think I am!”  
Tasha pauses for a moment, hoping this is not some trick.  
“Prove it. Tell us who you really are.”  
“I can do better than that. I can show you.”  
Slowly, “Storm-front” reaches up and presses a small button behind her ear. After she does this the holographic mask that was obscuring her true identity disappears. Steve has now made his way over to Tasha and they are both shocked at who they see standing in front of them.  
“Hill? What, how did you infiltrate Grant’s team? How could you not have contacted us?” Steve asks first in disbelief.  
“I’m sorry Captain, but Nick requested my help a few months ago. When Coulson asked him to lead the Council, Fury suspected that Phil had a deeper reason for making the request. My assignment was to find out what was going on here.”  
“And Fury trusted you, again? But left me out of the entire operation?” Tasha is furious at the revelation. “What about your job with Stark?”  
“Look, now isn’t the time for this.” Maria replies, trying to calm Tasha down. “We’re still in the middle of a war. Can we finish it?”  
“Oh, we’re going to finish this, but you and Fury have some answers to provide when this is over,” Tasha says back.  
As they move back into battle, many of the enemy forces have been defeated. Hunter and James worked together and beat their opponents. Hawkeye and Sharpshot have still been firing arrows from the roof, keeping the other SHIELD agents covered. When Frankie’s fight started to go her opponent’s way it was Becca who fired the arrow that took the enemy down. Frankie looked up and with a salute said:  
“Thanks, Becks.”  
The battle is now nearly over, but Talia is still fighting Chase. It’s been an hour since the fight started and neither girl has had a solid edge yet.  
“Come on Chase, it’s only a matter of time before I take you down. Why do you feel the need to prolong this?”  
“I told you before Rogers, this is revenge for my Grandfather.”  
Talia has finally had enough. As she starts to shift back into defense only, she knows Chase will get overconfident again. When that happens Talia will have the opening she needs to end it. She isn’t kept waiting long, as Chase begins missing with wild punches, getting more and more infuriated as Talia doesn’t take the offensive, simply blocking everything. Talia sidesteps Chase’s final punch, grabbing her arm and kicking her legs out from under her. As Grant regains consciousness, a lone figure comes walking up surveying the battle and the sight is as if a ghost has just walked through.  
“You have failed me Grant. I gave you command of these forces to eliminate SHIELD for good. Instead I arrive to see all of you defeated.”  
“Baron Von Strucker? It can’t be, you were reported dead, many years ago. You can’t be the mystery benefactor who set all this in motion.” Grant replies in shock at the sight before him.  
“Indeed, I am not Baron Von Strucker; I simply thought this disguise would be appropriate to allow me to enter the field of battle.”  
“A disguise, then who are you? What did you hope to gain from all of this,” Steve asks the man in front of them. He wouldn’t get the chance to answer as a clap of thunder and a flash of lightning signified the return of an Avenger, now also a King.


	32. Asgardian Heir

It has been many years since Thor was on Earth. Time spent between Midgard and the rest of the Nine Realms became too much of a strain on the relationship he shared with Jane Foster. He knew he would always have a place with the Avengers, but when Odin became ill he knew he had to return to Asgard. It was now his time to take the throne, and as he ended one relationship, another one was renewed. Thor and Sif married and an heiress would be born. His return however, was not a joyous one. As he made his way through the fields he greeted his allies, but went straight for Baron Von Strucker.  
“Loki, I know this is you. End this now!”  
Loki uses his power to change his form back from that of Strucker, and speaks to Thor.  
“Why brother, I thought you would no longer be returning to your precious Earth. You are now King of Asgard, why not let me rule Midgard?”  
“Because the Earth is still under my protection. We have had this battle too many times Loki.”  
“And we shall have it as many times as are necessary, Odinson.”  
Loki makes a move to attack Thor, but his attempt fails. He hadn’t counted on his niece to have come with her Father to Earth. With her own sword she strikes Loki and he is foiled before he can even begin the fight.  
“You should be tired of this Loki.” Thor says. “I have grown weary of the animosity between us.” Thor then binds Loki’s hands with the Asgardian shackles and calls to the Guardian.  
“Heimdall, open the Bifrost!”  
Loki is transported back to Asgard, and upon his arrival is transported to the dungeons by Fandral. While the SHIELD Agents are taking the enemy forces into custody, Steve, Tasha, Clint, Bobbi, and their kids all make their way to Thor and his daughter. Steve speaks first.  
“Welcome back Thor. It’s been too long since you were here.”  
“And I have missed you all, my friends. It was my fervent hope that my responsibilities as King would not keep me away this long.”  
“So how did you know it was Loki behind all this?”  
“Fandral found a guard in Loki’s cell, Captain. When I arrived, after a short battle I set Mjolnir down on his chest. The last time I did this, Loki’s disguise vanished.”  
“So Thor, aren’t you going to introduce us to your companion,” Tasha asks next.  
“Of course. Avengers, this is my daughter, Freyja. Eighteen Earth years ago Sif and I were blessed to have her come into our lives. I wish for her to learn what it means to be an Avenger. So she can share my place as a protector of Earth.”  
“My father says I am in need of a lesson in humility.” Freyja speaks for the first time.  
“Sounds like how Odin once described you, Thor.” Clint jokes with his friend.  
It is at that moment that Nick Fury and Maria Hill walk up, and Steve and Tasha remember their anger at the revelation of her involvement.  
“You’ll have to excuse us a moment Thor, Tasha and I have one more situation to deal with.”  
“Of Course, Captain. Then we should return to Avengers tower.”  
As Steve and Tasha walk back into the Academy, Talia moves to talk with Hunter while James and Becca greet the newest member of their family.  
“So, Becca said you had something to tell me, Talia.”  
“Yeah, I want you to know that I made a decision. I’ve decided to leave the Academy. I’ve learned all I can here, but if I stay, I feel like your life would constantly be in danger because of me.”  
Hunter starts to interrupt, but Talia places her hand over his mouth to keep him quiet.  
“Look, I know you can protect yourself. And maybe my fears and worries are irrational, but my mind is made up. Becoming an Avenger is something I have to do.”  
She then removes her hand from his mouth and Hunter gets to speak.  
“Talia, from the moment I met you, I knew you were meant to be more than just a SHIELD Agent. You’re the daughter of Captain America and The Black Widow. I meant it when I said you can have a normal life, and still live up to that legacy. And you should know, I’ve already been given my first assignment. Director Coulson just told me, he wants me to be SHIELD’s liaison to the Avengers. So you’re stuck with me.”  
Knowing that they can still be together makes them both happy and the couple goes to talk with Freyja and Thor. Inside the Academy, Fury and Hill can only listen as Tasha gets her anger out.  
“How many times do we have to go through this Nick? You trusted Maria with your faked death, but not me. Now you’ve done it again. I know what you’re going to say, only a limited number of people could know that you planned this, and that I would have done the same thing. Even after all these years, that’s still the problem.” Tasha says.  
“Honestly Nick, you wanted Tasha to be Deputy Director. That means you should have informed at least her of this plan. Did you even tell Coulson?” Steve asks incredulously.  
“Coulson didn’t know either. Although he had his suspicions, especially after talking with Barton. I only want the both of you to know that this was done to keep the mistakes of the past from happening again. And now SHIELD is stronger than before.”  
“Are you sure about that, Nick? SHIELD was infiltrated by HYDRA again, but this time here at the Academy. You do realize that I will have to inform the President of these events on my return to D.C.”  
“I’m aware of that Rogers. I stand by my statement that SHIELD will survive this.”  
As Steve and Tasha leave the office, she has one more question for Fury.  
“You’re right Nick, SHIELD will survive, and perhaps be better for it. But at what cost?”   
Tasha asking this question catches him off guard, and it’s a question Nick can’t answer. As Tasha and Steve walk away he feels her hand tighten around his. He knows this is because she can still only trust him and the Avengers. Reuniting with Thor, their kids, and the rest of the team, they board a Quinjet bound for New York and the tower.


	33. Debriefing

Before the quinjet made the return to Avengers Tower, Steve knew he had to return to D.C. to inform the President of all that transpired. Calling in first, Jacobs also requested that Tasha accompany him for the debriefing.  
“Welcome back to D.C., Secretary, and Deputy Director Rogers.”  
“Thank you Mr. President. We should inform you that the mission was successful. It was discovered that HYDRA had taken on a new form and infiltrated SHIELD again. Thankfully the corruption was rooted out, and dealt with. There were only minimal casualties and mainly to the enemy forces,” Steve speaks first.  
“What is the status of SHIELD at this point, Director Rogers?”  
“Sir, SHIELD is moving back into a rebuilding process. As you are aware this is not the first instance in which HYDRA has made an attempt to decimate the organization. Councilman Fury and Executive Director Coulson stayed behind at the Academy to deal with the fall-out from the situation.”  
“And how do you suggest we should proceed in this instance, Natasha?”  
“I don’t believe I follow, Sir.”  
“Considering the experience you both have with this from the prior infiltration, I’m asking you both if we should allow SHIELD to continue operating as it is, or if my administration should take a more aggressive stance in regulating SHIELD.”  
For a few moments, Steve and Tasha can only stare as they process the suggestion the President just made.   
“Sir, I believe that is a question that can’t be answered properly just yet. We should wait and see how the World Security Council handles the situation first.”  
“That is an excellent point, Steve, what do you think, Natasha?”  
“I agree with Steve, SHIELD can still be a force for good, and I’m not entirely sure that the Council would want the U.S. to usurp their position in this instance.”  
“Also a valid point, I thank you for your honesty. Until such time as we can properly assess a way to move forward, SHIELD will remain as it is. Good work handling the crisis. You’re dismissed.”  
Departing the Oval Office, Steve and Tasha return to the waiting quinjet, ready to return home.


	34. Reassembled

With the quinjet on final approach, Jarvis informs Tony and the rest of the Avengers of the returning team members.  
“Sir, we have a quinjet inbound. It will be landing on the roof in approximately 5 minutes. It appears, Sir that the Avengers are reassembled.”  
“Thanks Jarvis. Bruce, Rhodey, Sam, Carol, meet me at the landing pad a.s.a.p. We have visitors inbound.” Tony calls them out over the buildings internal communications array.  
As they assemble at the landing pad, the quinjet lands. The rear hatch opens and the rest of the team steps out. Now completely reunited after several months, Tony is the first to greet them all.  
“Welcome back to the tower Avengers. Now we can hear all about your adventures while you were away and we were left to save the world.”  
“Come on, Tony, we just got back. Can we a have a little time to unwind before you go stir crazy,” Steve jokes.  
“Uh-uh, Cap. The team rec floor is all set up for the party. You all have ten minutes to get changed and meet us there, or we’re starting without you.”  
Tasha speaks next with the sly smile on her face that Tony will never admit he missed.  
“Steve I could just hit him with the Widow’s bite. It would knock him unconscious for a bit, and we could have that downtime we need.”  
Gulping, Tony ducks behind Steve to try and protect himself.  
“Don’t let her do it Capsicle. Pepper would be very upset.”  
“Actually, Tony, Pepper would probably say you got what you deserved,” Clint jokes back, and elbowing Tony in the ribcage.  
“All right, guys that’s enough picking on Tony. Maybe my hopes were too high that he would outgrow the party life when he settled down with Pepper,” Steve says. “Let’s go get changed and get this over with.”  
The Avengers all leave the landing pad and head to their rooms. Ten minutes later they all meet on the recreation floor, changed into civilian clothes. As the older members of the team gather in the main room around the T.V., Becca, James, Freyja, and Talia go into the small kitchen, hoping for some quiet relaxation. The question James asks catches his sister off guard.  
“So what’s this about you leaving the Academy, sis?”  
“How did you know about that? I only told Hunter a few hours ago.”  
“You can’t hide anything from me Talia. You’ve felt like going to the Academy was a bad idea since our first weeks there.”  
“I’m leaving because I’ve learned all I can there. I want to be more than just a SHIELD agent.”  
“Okay, but what about Hunter? How did he react?”  
“He’s leaving as well. He got his first assignment. He’ll be liaison to the Avengers, courtesy of Phil. Anyway, let’s not talk about my decision. I want to know more about Freyja.”  
“Yeah, what did you mean when you said your Father thinks you’re in need of a lesson in humility,” Becca asks.  
Freyja is unsure of how to answer the question. She just met these three, but she feels comfortable around them. As a warrior she has trained herself to never get comfortable in any one place or situation.  
“Father brought me here because of a fight I was drawn into with the Enchantress and her sister Lorelei. I was eager to prove myself against more than just trolls and dark elves. Our battle was glorious, but it nearly destroyed the throne room and the Bifrost. Had Mother not intervened, I do not know what would have happened.”  
Hearing this young warrior be so open and honest surprises the trio. They’ve heard Thor’s stories of battle, but they’ve never heard them from someone near their age. Talia and Becca have been in several fights recently, but compared to Freyja, they’re just beginning. She is already a seasoned warrior. After a few moments of silence, Talia poses a question to their new friend.  
“So will you be staying with us, Freyja? I’m sure Uncle Tony can find you a place here in the tower.”  
“Father says I can return to Asgard whenever I wish. But he spent many years living with mortals. I would like to understand why he loves this planet so much. At home I am expected to be a warrior. I will stay because I want to know what it is like to be young, with friends who don’t measure their life spans in centuries.”  
Becca, James and Talia are not sure if that was a compliment, or just the way Asgardians speak of friendship. However they are intrigued to learn more about Asgard that Thor has not yet shared. As they continue talking, JARVIS provides them with drinks. Freyja’s reaction to her drink would be just like that of her Father.  
“Another!” She shouts as she throws the glass down.  
While Talia cleans up the mess, and explains Earth customs, James and Becca move into Tony’s movie theater to talk on their own. They finally both admit their growing feelings for each other. They both realize they were foolish to deny the truth for so long.  
“So, if I leave the Academy, what are you going to do James,” Becca asks.  
“Well, looking back, Talia was right. We really didn’t belong there. I know we can do more here with the team, than we could cooped up in a classroom. Truth is, Uncle Phil wants me to be Hunter’s partner. We’re both SHIELD Agents, but we’re Avengers now as well.”  
As the party ends, Phil, May, and Hunter arrive at the tower. They all heard about the confrontation with Fury and Hill. Naturally, Phil was upset that Fury kept him in the dark about Maria’s involvement. But she explained it was a one shot deal, and she was staying at Stark Industries. Phil also promised Tasha that if she kept her position as Deputy Director, he would make sure Fury doesn’t do this to them again. She agreed, Clint and Bobbi also decided to stay with their positions, and Steve was set to return to his position as Secretary of Defense. Agent May made the final announcement that Phil named her Academy Director. All this began a long successful partnership between Coulson’s SHIELD and The Avengers. A few years later, Talia and Becca would remain as Avengers, but also strike out on their own. Liberty and Sharpshot would have many more battles with Chase and Destiny, and as the original Avengers began to retire, a new team would be born.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final Chapter. I've been working on this story since June. I really hope everyone enjoyed it. It ended up being longer than I expected it to be. Feel free to leave feedback, the story may undergo some changes. I welcome all feedback and comments. Anything I can do to make the story better, let me know. Thank you all for reading the series. I'm trying to finish a Tron story right now, but once that is complete, be on the lookout for my next Romanogers story.

**Author's Note:**

> Talia Alaina Rogers, Becca Barton, Hunter Dugan, Frankie Williams, Chase Strucker and Destiny Cross were created by me for the purpose of the story. Captain America, The Black Widow, Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, Maria Hill, Hawkeye, Mockingbird belong to Marvel Comics.


End file.
